House of Livia

The House of Livia is a Roman domus on the Palatine Hill in Rome, traditionally associated with Livia Drusilla, the wife of Emperor Augustus, and dating to the late 1st century BC to early 1st century AD.

The house is noted for well-preserved painted garden frescoes that cover entire room walls and for its intimate peristyle garden, giving a vivid example of domestic Roman wall painting and private domestic layout. Many of the surviving wall paintings show continuous vegetal and garden motifs that wrap across multiple walls.

Archaeological work on the Palatine has identified the structure and its decoration as belonging to the early imperial period and associated with the imperial household by later tradition. The rooms and decoration have been conserved and displayed in situ during excavations and restorations.

The house sits on the Palatine Hill within central Rome, adjoining other imperial-era residences and a short walk from the Roman Forum and Colosseum.

• Access: Located on the Palatine Hill and normally visited as part of Palatine/Roman Forum combined tickets, so plan to combine it with nearby imperial residences.

What to See #

• Peristyle garden: A peristyle and small garden court that framed much of the domestic living space and provided the setting for the house's painted decoration.
• Frescoed reception rooms: A set of frescoed reception rooms and a dining room where wall paintings depicting garden scenes survive on multiple walls.