In Roman times, the city of Modena, then known as Mutina, was an important town on the crucial Via Aemilia road. Even two millennia later, the remains of the Roman Mutina are still being uncovered.

Between 2009 and 2011, a large area near the city center, previously used as a racetrack, was redeveloped into a two-story underground parking lot under the park. During the excavation, thousands of ancient remains were uncovered dating from the Iron Age to the 17th-century, but mostly from the Roman period. Among the findings, a section of a Roman road and a large necropolis were identified.

The largest discovery was an area with three dumping sites containing hundreds of Roman amphorae and other artifacts. While the redevelopment project continued, the area was transformed into an archaeological park (called NoviArk), while the underground entrance of the parking lot (called NoviPark) contains two exhibition areas. Here, over 300 Roman amphorae are now stored and can be freely seen by the thousands that use the parking lot every day.