Construction workers digging in Rome's historic center dug up this magnificent marble head. It's thought to be from the Augustan Age of Rome, more than 2,000 years ago and yet remains in exquisite condition. What's even more interesting is that the sculpture—likely of Aphrodite or another female divinity—had been used as filler material in a foundation wall.
From CNN:
According to [Capitoline Superintendent Claudio] Parisi Presicce, the head had been "reused as building material." The workers found it lying face down and protected by a clay bank on which the foundation of the wall rests[…]
Though it may seem surprising that an antiquity was found in this state, it would not be uncommon, the superintendent said."The reuse of works sculptures, even of significant value, was a very common practice in the late Middle Ages, which allowed, as in this case, the successful preservation of important works of art," he added.
