Who Are The Occupants of the "Tomb of the Athlete"

In the Casse Rosse area west of the center of Rome a miraculous discovery happened. Most Ancient burials are typically destroyed by time, people, and mother nature.  During construction in the area, by an earthmover working to extend an aqueduct about 6 ft underground. What was found was a tomb with four people inside was revealed. The tomb itself was untouched and what was buried there stayed there.

The four people were a man in his 30's, a man in his 50's, a man between 35 and 45 and a woman of undetermined age. The man in his 30's and the man in his 50's was laid out on counters, and the woman and They had died sometime in the 4th century.

It also unearthed jugs, dishes, a bronze coin (dating between 335 and 312), two strigils, and dishes of chicken, rabbit and other animals like lamb or goat. Likely left in the tomb as offerings to feed them in the afterlife.

The strigils were what helped termed the tomb "Tomb of the Athlete". Strigils were used during bathing to wipe off oil and to wipe the sweat off of bodies of athletes. The strigils were used in ancient Greece and Rome as a symbol for athletes. But the men in the tomb were over the athletic age and were probably not athletes at the time of their death.


SOURCES:
Ancient Origins 
Realm Of History
Smithsonian Magazine  
The Local
The New York Times