Used to be the same in Italy too, I expect it's still the case in many towns and cities - but this is Rome, a stone throw from the Vatican; you can't get away w

Used to be the same in Italy too, I expect it's still the case in many towns and cities - but this is Rome, a stone throw from the Vatican; you can't get away with that sort of behavior in those places anymore. Besides, this is a momentous discovery that will accrue a lot of political capital for the palace owners - precisely because they didn't spoil such treasure. Had it been some random Roman house with a couple of mosaics, things would have probably been a bit different.