A BROKEN PIPE SEARCH FINDS A MUSEUM, MUSEUM FAGGIANO AND ITS REMARKABLE SEARCH

You need to dig deep to unearth truth comes true with Museum Faggiano. When Luciano Faggiano enlisted the help of his sons to excavate a broken drain pipe in their newly purchased house in Lecce, Italy, he never dreamt that he would stumble upon ages of preserved ancient history.

Italy is a storehouse of thousands of years of history layered upon each other that even public utility planning needs to be done based on archeological permissions.

When Luciano Faggiano purchased 56 Via Ascanio Grandi, he planned to open a Trattoria. His problem was the sewage seeping through the floors and thus had to enlist his two sons to help him excavate the broken pipe. His sons Davide, Marco and Andre who were students reluctantly agreed to help for the weekend but as luck could have it, never could leave.

They stumbled upon a false floor which led to the tomb of Messapians and further excavations have thrown up startling layers complete with an agrarian store house and a Franciscan Convent for nuns during Roman times. Ancient vases, sculpture, frescoes, pottery and embalming vessels continue to be found. Mario De Marco, historian and author says, “the first layers of Lecce dates back to the time of Homer and every population who came after that left their mark upon Italian soil.”

Faggiano family has had their lives completely interrupted as excavations continue. “We were still digging for the pipe, but continued to find new artifacts. I was going to University and in the weekend, would be forced to come home to excavate.” said Andre Faggiano, Luciano’s eldest son. Even Faggiano was tired once as city archeologists continued to push him and costs spiraling up. But today it is his obsession and the building Museum Faggiano, stands testament to this chance of serendipity.

Luciano Faggiano has found his broken sewage pipe and got it fixed, but his dreams of a Trattoria continue to remain. People visiting Museum Faggiano can now descend to underground grottos and burial chambers layered with artifacts which bring light years of history from the Messapian times to the ancient Romans. Italian romance with its ancient past continues with new excavations unearthing ancient civilizations and even its public utility systems like subways sit side by side the ancient grottos.

http://www.ibtimes.com.au/broken-pipe-search-finds-museum-museum-faggiano-its-remarkable-search-1440490