The final phase of restoration work on the Mausoleum of Augustus, the largest circular tomb of the ancient world and a symbol of Imperial Rome and its cultural legacy, has begun.
The project, led by the Capitoline Superintendency for Cultural Heritage and made possible by a €6 million donation from Fondazione TIM, will be completed by the end of 2026. It will return to the community a powerful symbol of our shared history.
Over the centuries, starting in the Middle Ages, the Mausoleum has been used as a fortress, a garden, an amphitheatre, and a concert hall. In the 1930s, it became part of the square designed by Vittorio Morpurgo. Today, that square is coming back to life thanks to a redevelopment and enhancement project that reconnects the Mausoleum with the surrounding urban landscape, offering residents and visitors a journey through history and modernity.
To give everyone the chance to rediscover this extraordinary monument, which had long been neglected, Fondazione TIM has not only made its most significant cultural donation to date but also produced a documentary that explores the history of the world’s largest circular tomb, interwoven with the life and rise to power of the Emperor. The Mausoleum of Augustus. Memory for the Future is already available on the City of Rome’s YouTube channel and will soon be available for free on TIMVISION.
The work on the Mausoleum includes the completion and finishing of the interior spaces, the restoration of the burial chamber, and the installation of new systems. A new visitor route will be created within the circular green area, where the cypress trees, now in poor condition, will be replaced with new ones. A suspended walkway will also be added to connect Via dei Pontefici with the level of the former courtyard of Palazzo Correa. This will become an important element of functional connection between the Mausoleum and the surrounding urban fabric that embraced it until the last century.
Special attention has been given during the design phase to maintaining the thermal and humidity balance of the structure, with the aim of minimizing the impact of the systems regulating temperature and humidity. The goal is to ensure basic environmental comfort for visitors without compromising the optimal conditions needed to preserve the historical structures and their surfaces.
“Supporting the restoration of the Mausoleum of Augustus is a source of pride for Fondazione TIM, as we are helping to return to the public a place and a symbol of Rome through a joint public and private effort,” said Alberta Figari, Chair of Fondazione TIM and of TIM. “Investing in culture is not just an act of civic responsibility but also a conscious choice. It means creating value for the community, strengthening the sense of belonging, and promoting a shared vision of the future. Fondazione TIM funds innovative projects in the social, educational and cultural fields, always with the aim of addressing real needs of people and communities. With this in mind, we chose to support the restoration of the Mausoleum as a concrete sign of our will to build bridges between past and future, generating a positive impact on society.”
