Crypta Balbi historical timeline

A general built a theatre with war booty; the city grew on top of its portico for two thousand years, and the excavation of that one block became a museum.

Chronology

1. 1st century BC — the Crypta proper goes back to the 1st century BC.
2. 13 BC — Lucius Cornelius Balbus builds a small and refined theatre with the booty of his victories over the Libyan peoples; the Crypta is a portico attached to it, serving as a place of recreation and refreshment for the public during the intervals of the performances.
3. Alongside it — the nearby Porticus Minucia Frumentaria, a great quadriportico intended for the free distributions of grain to the citizens of Rome.
4. AD 80 — after the fire of 80 AD, a complex of buildings is built against the Crypta.
5. 7th century AD — that complex is definitively abandoned.
6. Late antiquity — a lime kiln is set up on the site, burning stone for mortar.
7. The Middle Ages — fortified complexes and medieval houses of the merchants occupy the block.
8. 17th century — the dormitory of the Monastery of Santa Caterina is built; the museum rooms have been made inside it.
9. Recent decades — the most recent archaeological investigations bring the post-fire buildings to light, and the site becomes a seat of the Museo Nazionale Romano together with Palazzo Massimo, Palazzo Altemps and the Terme di Diocleziano.
10. 9 January 2023 — the seat closes to the public for the works connected with the great URBS project, "dalla città alla campagna romana".

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