"guide to the hidden Naples" a Naples Travel Page by egicom05

Naples is a town floating on the hollow space of underground cavities. Napoli was built on a large stratum of tufa rock. Artificial caves were added to the natural ones since the early years of the city foundation. Greeks and Romans used the subsoil as a parallel city, opening aqueducts, catacombs, warehouses. The tufa has been until recent times the main building material and many quarries have been opened just underneath the town. Moreover, through ages Naples has developed in a strange way, growing layer by layer on a vertical line, the modern levels added on the oldest ones. That’s the reason why when you walk in the historical centre, Naples’ past is under your feet.
For example, excavation works for the new underground (Metropolitana) have brought to light 3 roman ships in Municipio Square, the monumental complex of Iso-Olympic Games, a temple, an ancient theatre and more than 3.300.000 archeological objects. We are still discovering our origins...