Cæsars sunkede by, som var forsvundet i århundreder under bølgerne, er blevet afsløret i forbavsende nye billeder.

Baiae var feriebyen for de romerske superrige og blev kendt for dets storslåede palæer.

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
Italien er ikkei mangel på romerske ruiner - men hvad der er tilbage af Baiae er i en klasse for sig selv.

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello

Kommentar: Denne artikel er blot delvis oversat til dansk af Sott.net fra: Amazing pictures - Drowned city of the Caesars Baiae was Roman empire's wine-soaked party town of luxury


It was a place synonymous with luxury and wickedness, historians claim - a wine-soaked party town

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
Now the site in the Gulf of Naples, modern-day Italy, has been rediscovered and opened to divers - who found many treasures still intact.

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
Among the sights now visible are the Pisoni and Protiro villas, where intricate white mosaics as well as residential rooms can be seen.

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
"Pliny the Younger used to live here and from here, across the gulf, he witnessed and described the 79 AD eruption of Mount Vesuvius that destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum."

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
In its heyday, Baiae was frequented by famous Romans including Julius Caesar, Nero, Pompey the Great, Marius, and Hadrian - who died there.

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
Antonio Busiello, who lives in Naples, photographed the site and found that roads, walls, mosaics and even statues had survived the ravages of time.

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
The 45-year-old said: "The beautiful mosaics, and the villas and temples that have reemerged or are still underwater show the opulence and wealth of this area.

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/ Antonio Busiello
"It was considered one of the most important Roman cities for centuries.

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
But as the centuries passed, much of it was lost to the sea as volcanic activity caused the coastline to retreat 400m inland

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
He added: "Diving here is like a dive into history, looking at ancient Roman ruins underwater is something hard to describe, a beautiful experience indeed."

Baiae Roman sunken city
© Pen News/Antonio Busiello
There's also the Nymphaeum of Punta Epitaffio, where divers swim among the statues of Ulysses and his helmsman Baius, for whom Baiae was named.