[Sidenote: House of Tiberius.] At the western end of the cryptoporticus a house has been disinterred by the late excavations, and it has been inferred that this must have been the one called by Josephus the house of Germanicus. Whatever name may now be assigned to it, the house appears to have been preserved for some reason from destruction, and it seems reasonable to conclude that some connection with the earlier history of the imperial Cæsars rendered it an object of veneration and care. The space between the cryptoporticus, along which we have passed, and the so-called basilica of the palace, is supposed to have been called the Area Palatina, where those who came to call upon the emperor had to wait.[21] The long cryptoporticus was connected with the Flavian public buildings, and perhaps also previously with the house of Augustus, by a branch passage which runs off from the long cryptoporticus at right angles, towards the back of the atrium and lararium. By this means the emperor could pass from his private palace to the public audience and banqueting chambers without encountering the crowd of those who were waiting for audience in the area. In this area was found, in 1868, the pedestal bearing the name of Domitius Calvinus, now placed on the site of the ruined temple which lies farther to the west, and which we shall presently mention. In the angle of the cryptoporticus near the house of Germanicus, are some beautiful remains of decorative work, consisting of paintings of birds and winged genii. These have been much injured by the damp exuding from a piscina which was constructed here in the second or third century for the keeping of fish, and which can be entered at the angle of the cryptoporticus. Near this piscina is the entrance to the building called the house of Tiberius or Germanicus. The construction of this house belongs to the period of Roman architecture, when reticulated work formed of the harder tufa, with small diamond-shaped stones, and with corners and connecting parts of the same stone, but without brickwork, was generally used. It was therefore probably built during the later republican times, and this agrees with the supposition that it was the works of Tiberius’s father or grandfather. Suetonius says that Tiberius was born on the Palatine.[22] The leaden pipes which have been found here, bear the names of Julia, the daughter of Titus, of one of Domitian’s, and one of Septimius Severus’s freedmen. The house is divided into two main parts, one of larger dimensions for receiving guests and showing hospitality, and the other of smaller sized rooms, for the family. The vestibule is an arched passage adorned with paintings on the walls, and mosaic pavement. From this the atrium is entered which had no impluvium, but was covered entirely with a roof. On the left are the remains of an altar of the Lares, and at the further side of the atrium are three large rooms, the decorative paintings of which are well preserved.