Talking City: Voices of Hidden History in the Architecture and Urban Places of Rome

Our cities today represent a complex intersection of material and immaterial culture, which can be described and promoted through possible heritage itineraries. Among the various topics of these itineraries, a topic of great interest for us is the writings traced throughout history on the wall surfaces of the city’s buildings to convey messages and opinions for the most diverse purposes. Their value is not only in the quality of the single artefact but also because they can serve as unique keys to understanding the society that produced them in depth, i.e., to comprehend the culture, customs, and ways of communication of a specific historical period. From this point of view, the inscriptions produced by the ruling classes, the secular and religious power are less exciting than those traced by single or common people. Therefore, these traces of the past are a fundamental historical resource since the people’s voice resides in them; they are an intangible heritage transmitted through the materiality of the supports and architectures on which they were traced or placed. Unfortunately, many of these inscriptions are hidden or barely visible within cities. Besides, their decoding is related to the type of handwriting, the engraving technique, and the content conveyed. Finally, in today’s society, there is a prevalent dominance of the image with clearly conveyed content, relegating these kinds of cultural products to an omitting background. The study presented in this paper, at an early stage of development, is developed within Rome, a city characterised by a complex and deep cultural stratification. The research aims to map some graffiti and ‘minor’ epigraphs (i.e., non-monumental or particularly solemn) and build narrative itineraries throughout the city, starting from a study of these particular traces within the architecture. By enhancing these historical sources through these routes, the architecture will become a narrative system capable of telling stories, giving voice to real-life stories and the immaterial culture condensed in those places, and rediscovering a stratified and hidden intangible heritage in the city.