An office building from the 1930s in London was about to be demolished — until remnants of the city’s first Roman basilica were found in the basement.

The remarkably well-preserved basilica was part of a public meeting place where citizens and politicians could socialize, shop and hear speeches in the growing city

Developers building an office block in the City of London discovered one of the most important archaeological finds ever in the capital. The basilica was where the leaders of Lond

The 2,000-year-old basilica was “once the beating heart of Roman London,” the Museum of London Archaeology said.

Experts are surprised at how much of the basilica, or town hall, survived. The ancient building was part of Roman London’s political and commercial center.

While exploring the site of a 32-story planned skyscraper in London, archaeologists unearthed the ruins of a nearly 2,000-year-old Roman basilica.