Archaeology in Ciociaria

The visit to these archaeological centres, surrounded by imposing polygonal walls and founded, so the legend goes, by Saturn, greatly surprises even those who have seen the grand ruins of biggers sites.

CASSINO
Notwithstanding the heavy bombings suffered in 1944 which wholly destroyed the urban area of Cassino together with the famous Abbey, yet it is still possible to admire the archaeological site of the Roman 'Casinum'.

At Crocifisso, a place along the road that leads up to the abbey, there is the entrance to the National Museum of Archaeology, whose halls show many exhibits that witness the passage from the Volscian to the Roman culture. It was in the imperial age that 'Casinum' saw a period of great economic prosperity, thanks to the presence of many noble families who transformed this territory from an agricultural land into a land of 'otia'. Mention goes in particular to Unmidia Quadratilla, a Roman matron who, at her own expenses, had built the Theatre, the Amphitheatre and the Mausoleum, all located nearby the ancient Via Latina and still visible through Porta Campana.

CASTRO DEI VOLSCI
The archaeology site and the Civic Museum of Madonna del Piano, located at Casale, are related to an extremely interesting settlement, dateble to a period between the 4^th century BC and the 9^th century AD.

The excavations have unearthed the structure of a Republican villa, some remains of an Imperial villa and different construction layers with a pagan building underneath a baptistry, as well as a necropolis from the 6th-7^th century AD. The evolution phases of this archaeological site can be traced in the local Civic Museum, which shows the image of all the different historical periods of the territory. Pre-historic tools in stone, votive exhibits coming from pre-Roman shrines, refined jewels in bronze, some objects in Etrurian style, statues, vases, coatings in multi-coloured marbles with geometrical decorations, Roman glass objects are arranged in the showcases of the Museum, together with a reconstruction of a later medieval tomb from a necropolis from the 4th/7^th century AD.

FERENTINO
Rising on a hilltop, at an altitude of 393 m above the underlying valley of the river Sacco, Ferentino is one of the few towns of Frosinone's province that has an interesting archaeological site within the urban rea with still well-preserved monuments.

Enclosed by the imposing polygonal walls that surround the inhabited sector for two kilometres, an impressive Acropoli contains an interesting 'Roman Market', dateable to a period between the 2^nd century and 1^st century BC, that is in very good conditions.

The town, during the Roman municipality, lived a period of peace and prosperity, so that it became the privileged holiday resort for all those that, as the poet Horace, wished to spend a relaxing time away from Rome, yet without renouncing social life. Hence, at Ferentino, there are to be seen the ruins of a Roman theatre (2^nd century AD) with 3,500 seats, together with the remains of grand thermal baths partly lying under the church of S. Lucia. Many epigraphs, found within the old town, are tangible evidence of the presence at Ferentino of many famous personalities such as Flavia Domitilla, wife of Vespasian, Trajan Pompeius and Aulo Quintilius Priscus, to mention but few.

An important historic paper is the funeral monument of the Roman censor Aulo Quintilius Priscus, an aedicula which bears the last will of this generous personage who arranged an amount of money and food to be distributed to the people on his birthday (9^th may), and destined sixty sesterces to the maintainance of the monument erected to his memory by the municipality.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE OF FREGELLAE AND CEPRANO MUSEUM
The unpland plain where once stood Fregellae extends for 90 ha across the territories of Arce and Ceprano. A series of excavation campaigns began in 1978 led to the acquisition of significant knowledge about the urban structure of this ancient city by unearthing its pubblic section, its residential area, as well as some of its shrines. The road network of the central section of the town has revealed the presence of a principal axis coinciding presumebly with an urban stretch of the Via Latina.

A waterworks has been found under the road axis, whereas within the archaeological complex, there is clear evidence of the remains of a large section of a Forum, a Thermal bath, as well as some shrines, such as the temple devoted to Aesculapius, god of the medicine.

There are also a number of domus, that have given proofs of the partecipation of Fregellae's people to the war fought by Rome in the Middle East against Antiochus III of Siria from 191 and 189 BC. The unearthed goods are shown in the halls of the Antiquarium of Ceprano (in the Town Hall), where it is possible to relive the history of this ancient town through telamons, votive earthenware, structure fragments of Aesculapius' shrine and mosaic floors that are but a small part of the incredible amount of goods found or that are under restoration.

FROSINONE MUSEUM OF ARCHAEOLOGY
Following some excavation campaigns carried out within the territory of Frosinone, Ciociaria's main town, a series of pre-Roman and Roman furniture have been found and are now shown in the halls of the Civic Museum, arranged within a palace in the old town. The collections comprise stone and earthware goods, china, jewellery, sculptures and epigraphs.

The Museum provides an interesting visit, thanks also to the didactic boards which describe the goods' function and illustrate the contest in which they have been found.

In this way, it is possible to acknowledge the importance of this area, once crossed by the via Latina, a vital communication way that reached the urban area of ancient Frusino and the Roman amphiteatre, few remains of which are still visible at the beginning of the modern via Roma.

POFI
In the new Pofi Museum of Prehistory, opened to the public in 2001, there are shown important exhibits that give evidence to the presence of one of the oldest men in Europe (Ceprano's Homo, 800 thousand years old; Anagni's Homo, 458 thousand years old; Pofi's Homo, 350 thousand years old). A particularly important human finding seems to be the skull of Ceprano's homo, who chronologically is the oldest hominid found in Europe, as well as an important step in the evolution of makind, as far as morphological traits are concerned.

The didactic itinerary explains the technique used in the production of stone manufacts by means of lower Paleolithic exhibits dug in different areas within the province of Frosinone.

The typology and chronology of these ancient settlements, witnessed by choppers, amygdales, scrapers and communities, feature a cultural evolution spanning through a million of years.

The ancient environments (lakes, rivers and volcanos), variable settings as for climate and evolution of the territory, are represented by means of plant and animal fossils, in particular noteworthy remains of elephants. Skulls, jaws, trunks and long bones of pachyderms are strikingly in very good conditions. A visit to the Museum hence allows to discover the earliest history of the man through the vestiges of the hinterland of Southern Latium, a region among the most interesting ones in Europe.

SUPINO
At 'Cona del Popolo', a place between Supino and Morolo, there are the ruins of a Roman villa dating from the 1^st century AD.

Unearthed during recent archaeological diggings, these remains show manty rooms with mosaic floors in marble, whose beauty and elegance are typical of the imperial age.

Some feature sea themes with fish, shells, jellyfish, tritons and swimming female figures.

This archaeological site cearly proofs that this green area, at the foot of the Lepini Mounts, was appreciated and inhabited by afflent families since Roman times.

Texts and photos courtesy of A.P.T. di Frosinone