Archaeologists map entire Roman town without digging

Experts say ‘awe-inspiring’ new images show ground-penetrating radar’s potential for use in major sites elsewhere in Mediterranean. Jon Sharman reports

The team discovered a sprawling network of water pipes dating back to the third century (PA)

Archaeologists have revealed the layout of an ancient Roman town in unprecedented detail – without any digging.

A team from the University of Cambridge and Belgium’s Ghent University used ground-penetrating radar (GPR) to map Falerii Novi and discovered, among other things, a sprawling network of water pipes dating back to the third century.

GPR uses radio waves and their echoes to build a high-resolution picture of what lies beneath a patch of ground. It has been used to peer even further back in time than the Roman era, with Cornell University researchers recently discovering human footprints dating to the last ice age in New Mexico.