CHAP. 9.—THE FIRST REGION OF ITALY[1]; THE TIBER; ROME.
The Tiber or Tiberis, formerly called Thybris, and previously Albula[2], flows down from nearly the central part of
the chain of the Apennines, in the territory of the Arretini.
It is at first small, and only navigable by means of sluices,
in which the water is dammed up and then discharged, in the
same manner as the Timia[3] and the Glanis, which flow into
it; for which purpose it is found necessary to collect the water
for nine days, unless there should happen to be a fall of rain.
And even then, the Tiber, by reason of its rugged and uneven
channel, is really more suitable for navigation by rafts than
by vessels, for any great distance. It winds along for a
course of 150 miles, passing not far from Tifernum[4], Perusia,
and Ocriculum[5], and dividing Etruria from the Umbri[6] and
the Sabini[7], and then, at a distance of less than sixteen
miles from the city, separating the territory of Veii from
that of Crustuminum, and afterwards that of the Fidenates
and of Latium from Vaticanum.
Below its union with the Glanis from Arretinum the Tiber
is swollen by two and forty streams, particularly the Nar[8]
and the Anio, which last is also navigable and shuts in
Latium at the back; it is also increased by the numerous
aqueducts and springs which are conveyed to the City. Here
it becomes navigable by vessels of any burden which may come
up from the Italian sea; a most tranquil dispenser of the
produce of all parts of the earth, and peopled and embellished
along its banks with more villas than nearly all the other
rivers of the world taken together. And yet there is no
river more circumscribed than it, so close are its banks shut
in on either side; but still, no resistance does it offer, although
its waters frequently rise with great suddenness, and no part
is more liable to be swollen than that which runs through
the City itself. In such case, however, the Tiber is rather
to be looked upon[9] as pregnant with prophetic warnings to
us, and in its increase to be considered more as a promoter
of religion than a source of devastation.
Latium[10] has preserved its original limits, from the Tiber
to Circeii[11], a distance of fifty miles: so slender at the beginning were the roots from which this our Empire sprang.
Its inhabitants have been often changed, and different
nations have peopled it at different times, the Aborigines,
the Pelasgi, the Arcades, the Seculi, the Aurunci, the Rutuli,
and, beyond Circeii, the Volsci, the Osci, and the Ausones
whence the name of Latium came to be extended as far as
the river Liris[12].
We will begin with Ostia[13], a colony founded by a king of
Rome, the town of Laurentum[14], the grove of Jupiter Indiges[15], the river Numicius[16], and Ardea[17], founded by Danaë, the
mother of Perseus. Next come the former site of Aphrodisium[18], the colony of Antium[19], the river and island called
Astura[20], the river Nymphæus[21], the Clostra Romana[22], and
Circeii[23], formerly an island, and, if we are to believe Homer,
surrounded by the open sea, though now by an extensive plain.
The circumstances which we are enabled to publish on this
subject for the information of the world are very remarkable.
Theophrastus, the first foreigner who treated of the affairs of
Rome with any degree of accuracy (for Theopompus, before
whose time no Greek writer had made mention of us, only
stated the fact that the city had been taken by the Gauls,
and Clitarchus, the next after him, only spoke of the embassy
that was sent by the Romans to Alexander)—Theophrastus,
I say, following something more than mere rumour, has
given the circuit of the island of Circeii as being eighty stadia,
in the volume which he wrote during the archonship of Nicodorus at Athens[24], being the 440th year of our city. Whatever land therefore has been annexed to that island beyond the
circumference of about ten miles, has been added to Italy
since the year previously mentioned.
Another wonderful circumstance too.—Near Circeii are
the Pomptine Marshes[25], formerly the site, according to
Mucianus, who was thrice consul, of four-and-twenty cities.
Next to this comes the river Ufens[26], upon which is the
town of Terracina[27], called, in the language of the Volsci,
Anxur; the spot too where Amyclæ[28] stood, a town destroyed by serpents. Next is the site of the Grotto[29], Lake
Fundanus[30], the port of Caieta[31], and then the town of Formiæ[32], formerly called Hormiæ, the ancient seat of the Læstrygones[33], it is supposed. Beyond this, formerly stood the
town of Pyræ; and we then come to the colony of Minturnæ[34], which still exists, and is divided[35] by the river Liris,
also called the Glanis. The town of Sinuessa[36] is the last in
the portion which has been added to Latium; it is said by
some that it used to be called Sinope.
At this spot begins that blessed country Campania[37], and
in this vale first take their rise those hills clad with vines, the
juice of whose grape is extolled by Fame all over the world;
the happy spot where, as the ancients used to say, father
Liber and Ceres are ever striving for the mastery. Hence
the fields of Setia[38] and of Cæcubum[39] extend afar. and, next
to them those of Falernum[40] and of Calinum[41]. As soon as we
have passed these, the hills of Massica[42], of Gaurus[43], and of
Surrentum rise to our view. Next, the level plains of Laborium[44] are spread out far and wide, where every care is bestowed on cultivating crops of spelt, from which the most delicate fermenty is made. These shores are watered by warm
springs[45], while the seas are distinguished beyond all others
for the superlative excellence of their shell and other fish.
In no country too has the oil of the olive a more exquisite
flavour. This territory, a battle-ground as it were for the
gratification of every luxurious pleasure of man, has been
held successively by the Osci, the Greeks, the Umbri, the
Tusci, and the Campani.
On the coast we first meet with the river Savo[46], the town
of Volturnum with a river[47] of the same name, the town of
Liternum[48], Cumæ[49], a Chalcidian colony, Misenum[50], the port
of Baiæ[51], Bauli[52], the Lucrine Lake[53], and Lake Avernus, near
which there stood formerly a town[54] of the Cimmerians. We
then come to Puteoli[55], formerly called the colony of Dicæ-
archia, then the Phlegræn[56] Plains, and the Marsh of
Acherusia[57] in the vicinity of Cumæ.
Again, on the coast we have Neapolis[58], also a colony of
the Chalcidians, and called Parthenope from the tomb there
of one of the Sirens, Herculaneum[59], Pompeii[60], from which
Mount Vesuvius may be seen at no great distance, and
which is watered by the river Sarnus[61]; the territory of
Nuceria, and, at the distance of nine miles from the sea, the
town of that name[62], and then Surrentum[63], with the Promontory of Minerva[64], formerly the abode of the Sirens. The
distance thence by sea to Circeii is seventy-eight miles This
region, beginning at the Tiber, is looked upon as the first of
Italy according to the division of Augustus.
Inland there are the following colonies:—Capua[65], so
called from its champaign country, Aquinum[66], Suessa[67], Venafrum[68], Sora[69], Teanum surnamed Sidicinum[70], Nola[71];
and the towns of Abella[72], Aricia[73], Alba Longa[74], the Acer-
rani[75], the Allifani[76], the Atinates[77], the Aletrinates[78], the
Anagnini[79], the Atellani[80], the Affilani[81], the Arpinates[82],
the Auximates[83], the Abellani[84], the Alfaterni (both those
who take their names from the Latin, the Hernican
and the Labicanian territory), Bovillæ[85], Calatia[86], Casi-
num[87], Calenum[88], Capitulum[89] of the Hernici, the Cereatini[90], surnamed Mariani, the Corani[91], descended from the
Trojan Dardanus, the Cubulterini, the Castrimœnienses[92],
the Cingulani[93], the Fabienses[94] on the Alban Mount,
the Foropopulienses[95] of the Falernian district, the Frusinates[96], the Ferentinates[97], the Freginates[98], the old
Frabaterni[99], the new Frabaterni, the Ficolenses[100], the Fre-
gellani[101], Forum Appî[102], the Forentani[103], the Gabini[104], the
Interamnates Succasini[105], also surnamed Lirinates, the
Ilionenses Lavinii[106], the Norbani[107], the Nomentani[108], the Prænestini[109] (whose city was formerly called Stephané), the Privernates[110], the Setini[111], the Signini[112], the Suessulani[113], the
Telesini[114], the Trebulani, surnamed Balinienses[115], the Trebani[116], the Tusculani[117], the Verulani[118], the Veliterni[119], the
Ulubrenses[120], the Urbinates[121], and, last and greater than
all, Rome herself, whose other name[122] the hallowed mysteries
of the sacred rites forbid us to mention without being guilty
of the greatest impiety. After it had been long kept buried
in secresy with the strictest fidelity and in respectful and
salutary silence, Valerius Soranus dared to divulge it, but
soon did he pay the penalty[123] of his rashness.
It will not perhaps be altogether foreign to the purpose,
if I here make mention of one peculiar institution of our
forefathers which bears especial reference to the inculcation
of silence on religious matters. The goddess Angerona[124],
to whom sacrifice is offered on the twelfth day before the
calends of January [21st December], is represented in her
statue as having her mouth bound with a sealed fillet.
Romulus left the city of Rome, if we are to believe those
who state the very greatest number, having three[125] gates and
no more. When the Vespasians were emperors[126] and censors,
in the year from its building 826, the circumference of the
walls which surrounded it was thirteen miles and two-fifths.
Surrounding as it does the Seven Hills, the city is divided
into fourteen districts, with 265 cross-roads[127] under the
guardianship of the Lares. If a straight line is drawn
from the mile-column[128] placed at the entrance of the
Forum, to each of the gates, which are at present thirty-seven in number (taking care to count only once the
twelve double gates, and to omit the seven old ones, which
no longer exist), the result will be [taking them altogether],
a straight line of twenty miles and 765 paces[129]. But if we
draw a straight line from the same mile-column to the very
last of the houses, including therein the Prætorian encampment, and follow throughout the line of all the streets, the
result will then be something more than seventy miles. Add
to these calculations the height of the houses, and then a
person may form a fair idea of this city, and will certainly
be obliged to admit that there is not a place throughout the
whole world that for size can be compared to it. On the
eastern side it is bounded by the agger of Tarquinius Superbus, a work of surpassing grandeur; for he raised it
so high as to be on a level with the walls on the side
on which the city lay most exposed to attack from the neighbouring plains. On all the other sides it has been fortified
either with lofty walls or steep and precipitous hills[130], but so
it is, that its buildings, increasing and extending beyond all
bounds, have now united many other cities to it[131].
Besides those previously mentioned, there were formerly
in the first region the following famous towns of Latium:
Satricum[132], Pometia[133], Scaptia, Politorium[134], Tellene, Tifata,
Cænina[135], Ficana[136], Crustumerium, Ameriola[137], Medullum[138],
Corniculum[139], Saturnia[140], on the site of the present city of
Rome, Antipolis[141], now Janiculum, forming part of Rome,
Antemnæ[142], Carnerium[143], Collatia[144], Amitinum[145], Norbe,
Sulmo[146], and, with these, those Alban nations[147] who used to
take part in the sacrifices[148] upon the Alban Mount, the Albani, the Æsulani[149], the Accienses, the Abolani, the Bube-
tani[150], the Bolani[151], the Cusuetani, the Coriolani[152], the Fidenates[153], the Foretii, the Hortenses[154], the Latinienses, the
Longulani[155], the Manates, the Macrales, the Mutucumenses, the Munienses, the Numinienses, the Olliculani, the
Octulani, the Pedani[156], the Polluscini, the Querquetulani, the
Sicani, the Sisolenses, the Tolerienses, the Tutienses, the Vimitellarii, the Velienses, the Venetulani, and the Vitellenses.
Thus we see, fifty-three peoples of ancient Latium have
passed away without leaving any traces of their existence.
In the Campanian territory there was also the town of
Stabiæ[157], until the consulship of Cneius Pompeius and L.
Cato, when, on the day before the calends of May [30th of
April], it was destroyed in the Social War by L. Sulla the
legatus, and all that now stands on its site is a single farmhouse. Here also Taurania has ceased to exist, and the
remains of Casilinum[158] are fast going to ruin. Besides these,
we learn from Antias that king L. Tarquinius took Apiolæ[159],
a town of the Latins, and with its spoils laid the first foundations of the Capitol. From Surrentum[160] to the river
Silarus[161], the former territory of Picentia[162] extends for a
distance of thirty miles. This belonged to the Etruscans,
and was remarkable for the temple of the Argive Juno,
founded by Jason[163]. In it was Picentia, a town[164] of the territory of Salernum[165].
1. The First Region extended from the Tiber to the Gulf of Salernum,
being bounded in the interior by the Apennines. It consisted of ancient
Latium and Campania, comprising the modern Campagna di Roma, and
the provinces of the kingdom of Naples.
2. Livy, B. i. c. 3, and Ovid, Fasti, B. iii. 1. 389, inform us that the
name of Albula was changed into Tiberis in consequence of king Tiberinus
being accidentally drowned in it.
3. Still known by that name. The Glanis is called la Chiana.
4. According to D'Anville, now known as Citta di Castello.
5. A municipal town of Umbria, situate near the confluence of the
rivers Nar and Tiber, and on the Flaminian Way. There are the ruins
of an aqueduct, an amphitheatre, and some temples, now the modern
Otricoli.
6. The territory of Umbria extended from the left bank of the Tiber,
near its rise, to the Adriatic.
7. The Sabines occupied the left bank of the Tiber from the Umbri
to the Anio. The Crustumini and the Fidenates probably occupied the
southern part of the district about the river Alba.
8. The Nera and the Tevcrone. The exact situation of the district of
Vaticanum has not been ascertained with exactness.
9. As not so much causing mischief by its inundations, as giving
warning thereby of the wrath of the gods and of impending dangers;
which might be arrested by sacrifices and expiatory rites.—See Horace,
Odes, B. i. 2. 29.
10. The frontier of ancient Latium was at Circeii, but that of modern
Latium extended to Sinuessa.
11. A town of Latium, situate at the foot of the Mons Circeius, now
Monte Circello. It was used as a place of retirement, and Tiberius and
Domitian had villas there. The Triumvir Lepidus was banished thither
by Octavius after his deposition. It was also famous for its oysters,
which were of the finest quality. Considerable remains of it are still
to be seen on the hill called Monte di Citadella, about two miles from
the sea.
12. Now the Garigliano, the same river which he previously calls the
Glanis. It was the boundary between Latium and Campania.
13. Founded by Ancus Martius, as we learn from Livy. It was abandoned under the Emperor Claudius, who built the Portus Romanus or
Portus Augusti in its vicinity; and it only continued famous for its salt-works, which had been established there by Ancus Martius. Its ruins,
still called Ostia, are nearly three miles from the coast, in consequence of
the receding of the sea.
14. Now San Lorenzo. It was between Ostia and Antium.
15. By some, Æneas was supposed to have been worshiped by that
name.
16. Now the river Numico.
17. The ruins of this once great city may still be seen near the present
village of the same name. Its situation was peculiarly unhealthy. Another tradition, besides the one mentioned by Pliny, was, that it was
founded by a son of Ulysses and Circe. It was twenty-four miles distant
from Rome.
18. A temple of Venus, of which the ruins are still to be seen.
19. Its few ruins are still known as Anzio Rovinato. It was famous for
its temple of Fortune, addressed by Horace, Odes, i. 35. Near the site is
the modern village of Porto d'Anzo.
20. This island was occupied by villas of the Roman nobility, and was
the resort of Cicero, Augustus and Tiberius. There is still a fortified
town called the Torre di Astura.
21. The modern Ninfa.
22. "The Roman Bulwarks." They were thrown up to protect the
frontier of the ancient kingdom of Rome from the inroads of the Volscians
23. To our previous note we may add that this spot was supposed to
have been once inhabited by the enchantress Circe, the daughter of the
Sun, and from her to have taken its name.
24. This has been also translated "dedicated to Nicodorus, the Archon
of Athens," but nothing appears to be known of such a fact as the
dedication to Nicodorus of any of his works.
25. Now called the "Palude Pontine." They are again mentioned in
B. xxvi. c. 9.
26. Now called Il Portatore.
27. It was situate fifty-eight miles from Rome; the modern town of
Terracina stands on its site. The remains of the ancient citadel are
visible on the slope of Montecchio.
28. The exact site of this place is unknown. Servius, in his Commentary on B. x. of the Æneid, l. 564, tells the same story of the serpents.
29. This was near Amyclæ. A villa was situate there called "Speluncæ,"
from the cavities in the rock, in one of which the Emperor Tiberius nearly
lost his life by the falling in of the roof. The modern village of Sperlonga,
eight miles west of Gaëta, marks its site.
30. Now Lago di Fondi.
31. Now Gaëta, said to have received its name from being the burial place of Caieta, the nurse of Æneas. The shore was studded with numerous villas of the Roman nobility. It is now a city of great opulence; in
its vicinity extensive ruins are to be seen.
32. On the spot now called Mola di Gaëta. Many of the wealthy Romans,
and among them Cicero, had villas here: and at this place he was put to
death. It was destroyed by the Saracens in the year 856. The remains
of antiquity to be seen on this spot are very extensive.
33. Homer places these Cannibals on the coast of Sicily, but the Romans
in general transplanted them to the vicinity of Circeii, and suppose Formiæ to have been built by Lamus, one of their kings. It is more probable however that it was founded by the Laconians, from whom it may
have received its name of Hormiæ (from the Greek o(/rmos), as being a good
roadstead for shipping.
34. Its site is occupied by the present Trajetta. In its marshes, formed
by the overflow of the Liris, Caius Marius was taken prisoner, concealed
in the sedge.
35. The town of Minturnæ stood on both banks of the river.
36. Its ruins are probably those to be seen in the vicinity of Rocca di
Mondragone. It was a place of considerable commercial importance.
On its site Livy says there formerly stood the Greek city of Sinope.
37. "Felix illa Campania."
38. Now Sezza.
39. A marshy district of Latium, extending about eight miles along the
coast from Terracina to Speluncæ, famous in the time of Horace for the
first-rate qualities of its wines.
40. A district famous for its wines, extending from the Massican Hills
to the north bank of the Volturnus.
41. According to Hardouin, the town of Calenum was on the site of the
present Calvi near Capua.
42. Now called Monte Marsico, and as famous for its wine (called Museatella) as it was in the Roman times.
43. Now Monte Barbaro. The wines of most of these places will be
found fully described by Pliny in B. xiv.
44. More fully mentioned, B. xviii. c. 29, where the 'alicæ' or fermenty
made from the spelt grown here is again referred to.
45. Of Baiæ, Puteoli, and Stabiæ, for instance.
46. The modern Saove.
47. Now called the Volturno, with a small place on its banks called
Castel Volturno.
48. The present village of Torre di Patria is supposed to occupy its site.
49. Strabo describes Cumæ as a joint colony of the Chalcidians of Eubœa
and the Cymæans of Æolis. Its sea-shore was covered with villas of the
Roman aristocracy, and here Sylla spent the last years of his life. Its
site is now utterly desolate and its existing remains inconsiderable.
50. Now Capo or Punta di Miseno; a town built on a promontory of
Campania, by Æneas, it was said, in honour of his trumpeter, Misenus,
who was drowned there. It was made by Augustus the principal station
of the Roman fleet. Here was the villa of Marius, which afterwards belonged to Lucullus and the Emperor Tiberius, who died here.
51. Famous for its warm springs, and the luxurious resort of the Roman
patricians. Marius, Lucullus, Pompey, and Cæsar had villas here. In
later times it became the seat of every kind of pleasure and dissipation.
It is now rendered unwholesome by the Malaria, and the modern Castello
di Baja, with numerous ruins, alone marks its site.
52. The modern village of Baolo stands near its site. It was here that
Hortensius had his fish-ponds, mentioned by Pliny in B. ix. c. 55. It
rivalled its neighbour Baiæ in ministering to the luxury of the wealthy
Romans, and was occupied by numerous villas so late as the reign of
Theodosius.
53. Probably the inner part of the Gulf of Cumæ or Puteoli, but separated from the remainder by an embankment eight stadia in length. It
was famous for its oyster-beds. Behind it was the Lake Avernus, occupying the crater of an extinct volcano, and supposed by the Greeks to be
the entrance to the Infernal Regions. Agrippa opened a communication
with the Lucrine Lake to render Lake Avernus accessible to ships. The
Lucrine Lake was filled up by a volcanic eruption in 1538, and a mountain rose in its place. The Lake Avernus is still called the Lago di
Averno.
54. Or "the town Cimmerium." Nothing is known of it.
55. Now Pozzuolo. The Romans called it Puteoli, from the strong
smell of its mineral springs. There are still many ruins of the ancient
town, which was destroyed by Alaric, Genseric, and Totila, and as many
times rebuilt.
56. Now called Salpatara. This was the name given to the volcanic
plain extending from Cumæ to Capua, and supposed to have been once
covered with fire; whence the name, from fle/gw, "to burn."
57. Now the Lago di Fusaro. It seems to have had its name from its
vicinity to Avernus, the supposed entrance to the infernal regions. Its
banks were, in the later times of the Roman republic, adorned with the
villas of the wealthy.
58. Neapolis, or the "New City," was founded by the Chalcidians of
Cumæ on the site of Parthenope, the supposed burial-place of the Siren
of that name. It was so called as being only a 'new quarter' of the
neighbouring city of Cumæ. The modern city of Naples stands nearly
on its site.
59. Said to have been founded by Hercules. It was on the occasion of
its destruction by an eruption of Vesuvius, A.D. 79, that our author unfortunately met his death, a martyr to his thirst for knowledge. Its
closer proximity to Vesuvius caused it to be buried under a more solid
body of materials ejected from the mountain than was the case with
Pompeii; which seems to have been suffocated with ashes, while Herculaneum was covered with volcanic tufa most probably hardened by the
agency of water. A few scattered inhabitants are supposed to have afterwards settled upon the site where it was buried, which for many centuries was utterly forgotten, till brought to light in 1738. Part of the site
over the buried town is occupied by the villages of Resina and Portici.
The works of art found here far exceed in value and interest those discovered at Pompeii.
60. This seems to have been a town of Oscan origin. The first traces of
it were found in 1689, but excavations were not commenced till 1721.
It perished in the same eruption of Vesuvius as Herculaneum.
61. Now the Sarno. Its course was changed by the great eruption of
Vesuvius previously mentioned.
62. The modern Nocera stands on its site. Pompeii was used as its
harbour.
63. Now Sorrento.
64. Now also called Capo della Minerva.
65. It probably had its name from Campania, of which it was the capital, and which was so called from its extensive campi or plains. The
site of this luxurious and magnificent city is now occupied by the village
of Santa Maria di Capoua, the modern city of Capua being on the site
of ancient Casilinum. Of ancient Capua there are but few remains. It
was made a Roman colony by Julius Cæsar.
66. Originally a city of the Volscians: Cicero had a villa there, and
Juvenal and the emperor Pescennius Niger were natives of it. The present Aquino stands on its site, and there are considerable remains of it
to be seen.
67. Or Suessa Aurunca, to distinguish it from the Volscian city of
Suessa Pometia. The poet Lucilius was a native of it. The modern
Sessa stands in its vicinity.
68. The modern Venafri stands near its site. It was famous for the
excellence of its olives.
69. On the banks of the Suris, and the most northerly town of the
Volsci. The modern Sora is in its vicinity, and the remains of its walls
are still to be seen.
70. The modern Teano occupies its site. It was famous for the medicinal
springs in its vicinity. There was another Teanum, in Apulia.
71. The town on its site still preserves the name. Bells were made
here, whence in the later writers they are called "Nolæ." There is also
an ecclesiastical tradition that church bells were first used by Saint Paulinus, bishop of this place, whence they were called 'Campanæ.' The
emperor Augustus died here.
72. The remains of the ancient town, of which the ruins are very extensive, are called Avella Vecchia. It was famous for its fruit, especially
its filberts, to which it gives name in the French "Avelines." It was
first a Greek colony, and then a town of the Oscans.
73. A city of Latium, sixteen miles from Rome, and said to have been of
Sicilian origin. The modern town of La Riccia occupies the site of its
citadel. It was celebrated for the temple and grove of Diana, whose
high priest was always a fugitive slave who had killed his predecessor,
and was called "Rex nemorensis," or "king of the grove." See Ovid,
Fasti, B. vi. 1. 59; Art of Love, B. i. 1. 260; and Lucan, B. vi. 1. 74.
74. The ancient city was destroyed by Tullus Hostilius, king of Rome.
The Roman colony here was probably but small. The Roman patrician
families, the Julii, Servilii, Tullii, and Quintii, are said to have migrated
from Alba Longa, which, according to tradition, had given to Rome her
first king.
75. The people of Acerra, still called by the same name; it was plundered and burnt by Hannibal, B.C. 216, but was rebuilt by order of the
Roman senate.
76. The people of Allifæ, a former city of Samnium, on the borders of
Campania. The modern city of A life, a decayed place, stands on its site.
There are considerable remains.
77. The people of Atina, an ancient city of the Volscians. The modern
city of Atina, noted for the bleakness of its situation, stands on its site.
There are extensive ruins of the ancient city.
78. The people of Aletrium or Alatrium, an ancient city of the Hernici.
The modern Alatri stands on its site; there are but few ancient remains.
79. The people of Anagnia in Latium, still called Anagni. There are
scarcely any remains of the ancient place, which was of considerable
importance.
80. The people of Atella, an ancient city of Campania. Some remains
of its ruins are to be seen two miles east of the town of Aversa, near the
villages of San Arpino and San Elpidio.
81. The people of Affilæ, an ancient Hernican town. It is still called
Affile, and has many ancient remains.
82. The people of Arpinum, once a famous city of the Volscians. The
present Arpino occupies its site; there are few Roman remains, but its
ancient walls, of Cyclopean construction, still exist. It was the birthplace of Marius and Cicero. The villa of the latter was on the banks of
the adjoining river Fibrenus. It was, and is still, famous for its woollen
manufactures.
83. The people of Auximum, a city of Picenum. Its site is occupied by
the modern Osimo; there are numerous remains of antiquity to be seen.
84. Or perhaps "Abellini," people of Abelliacum; which, if meant,
ought not to be included in this division, being a city of the Hirpini.
This city was finally destroyed in the wars of the Greeks and Lombards,
and the modern Avellino rose on its site. There are considerable ruins in
the vicinity. According to Hardouin, this place also claimed the honour
of giving name to filberts, which grew abundantly in its vicinity. If such
is the case, it seems probable that both it and Abella took their names
from that fruit as called by the early inhabitants. See Note in p. 198.
85. An ancient city of Latium. Its ruins are to be seen in the vicinity
of the Via Appia. See a curious story connected with it in Ovid's Fasti,
B. iii. 1. 667 et seq.
86. There were two cities of this name on the confines of Samnium and
Campania, one in the valley of the Volturnum, the modern Caiazzo, the
other in Campania, between Capua and Beneventum, whose ruins are
probably those to be seen at Le Galazzi, between Caserta and Maddaloni.
87. Once a considerable city of Latium. The modern city of San Germano has risen on its ruins, while the name of Monte Casino has been
retained by the monastery founded near it by St. Bernard A.D. 529.
88. The present Calvi probably occupies its site.
89. It is not named in history. Its site was probably between Palestrina
and Il Piglio.
90. The people of Cereatæ, a town of Latium. It is supposed that the
ancient monastery of Casamari occupied its site.
91. The people of Cora, an ancient city of Latium. The present Cori
stands on its site, and there are considerable remains of the ancient walls
and other buildings.
92. The people of Castrimœnium, a colony of Sylla. It has been suggested
that these were the same people whom Pliny speaks of at a subsequent
place in this chapter as the Munienses, an extinct people of Latium. If
so, the name was perhaps changed on the establishment here by Sylla
of his colony. It probably stood near the modern city of Marino.
93. The people of Cingulum, a city of Picenum, the site of which is
occupied by the modern Cingoli.
94. It is conjectured that Fabia was on the same site as the present
village of Rocca di Papa.
95. The inhabitants of Forum Popilii in Campania; its site is unknown.
96. The people of Frusino, originally a Volscian city. The modern
Frosinone occupies its site.
97. The people of Ferentinum, a city of the Hernici: the present city
of Ferentino stands on its site. The ruins are very extensive.
98. Probably the people of Fregellæ, an ancient city of the Volscians.
Its site is now unknown, but it was probably on the banks of the Liris,
opposite to the modern Ceprano.
99. The people of Fabrateria or Frabateria, a Volscian city. A Roman
colony was placed there B.C. 124, by C. Gracchus, and probably the old
inhabitants for that reason styled themselves "Veteres." The ruins at
San Giovanni in Cerico, about three miles from Falvaterra, are supposed
to be those of this place, or at least of the new town or colony. In such
case Falvaterra may occupy the site of the original city.
100. The people of Ficulnea or Ficulia, a city of ancient Latium, on the
Via Nomentana. It is supposed to have decayed soon after the reign of
M. Aurelius. Its site was probably on the modern domain of Cesarini,
though some separate the ancient Latin city from the Roman town, and
fix the locality of the former on the hill called Monte Gentile, or that
of the Torre Lupara.
101. These are omitted in most editions, but if a correct reading, the
word must signify the "people of Fregellæ," and the Freginates must be
the people of Fregenæ in Etruria; although they do not appear properly
to belong to this locality.
102. "The Market of Appius." It was distant forty-three miles from
Rome, and we learn from Horace, that it was the usual resting-place
for travellers at the end of one day's journey from Rome. It is also
mentioned in the account of the journey of St. Paul (Acts xxviii. 15) as
one of the usual resting-places on the Appian way. There are now no
inhabitants on the spot, but considerable ruins still exist, as well as the
forty-third milestone, which is still to be seen.
103. Probably the inhabitants of Ferentium or Ferentinum, now Ferento,
five miles from Viterbo, a city of Etruria, of which very considerable
remains exist.
104. The people of Gabii, formerly one of the most famous cities of
Latium. On its site the ruins of a mediæval fortress now stand, known
as Castiglione. Some remains of the walls still exist.
105. The people of Interamna Lirmas, a Roman colony on the banks
of the Liris; and as there were several cities of the same name, it was
generally distinguished by the epithet "Lirinas." Pliny no doubt calls it
"Succasina," from its vicinity to Casinum. Its site, though uninhabited,
is still called Terame, and there are numerous remains of antiquity.
106. Probably the people of Lavinium were thus called from their supposed Trojan descent. The town was said to have been founded by Æneas
in honour of his wife Lavinia, the daughter of Latinus. In the times of
the Antonines it was united with Laurentum; their ruins are to be
seen at Casale di Copocotta.
107. The people of Norba, a town of Latium. It is now called Norma,
and there are still some remains of the ancient walls.
108. Nomentum, now called La Mentana, was a Latin town, fourteen
miles from Rome.
109. The people of Præneste, one of the most ancient towns of Latium.
It was originally a Pelasgic city, but claimed a Greek origin, and was said
to have been built by Telegonus, the son of Ulysses. During summer it
was much frequented by the Romans for its delightful coolness. The
remains of its ancient walls are still to be seen at Palestrina.
110. The people of Privernum, now Piperno, an ancient city of Latium.
111. The people of Setia, now Sesse or Sezza, an ancient town of Latium,
to the east of the Pomptine marshes. It was famous for its wine.
112. The people of Signia, now Segni, a town of Latium founded by Tarquinius Priscus. There are still some remains of its walls.
113. The people of Suessula, now Castel di Sessola.
114. The people of Telesia, a town of Samnium seven leagues from Capua,
now called Telese.
115. Trebula was distinguished probably by this surname from a town
of that name in Samnium. There seem to have been two places of the
name in the Sabine territory, but it is not known which is here meant. The
ruins of one of them are supposed to be those not far from Maddaloni.
116. The people of Treba, now Trevi, a town of Latium.
117. The people of Tusculum, an ancient town of Latium, the ruins of
which are to be seen on a hill about two miles distant from the modern
Frascati. Cicero's favourite residence was his Tusculan villa, and Cato
the censor was a native of this place.
118. The people of Verulæ, a town of the Hernici, in Latium, now Veroli.
119. The people of Velitræ, an ancient town of the Volsci, now Velletri.
It was the birth-place of the emperor Augustus.
120. The people of Ulubræ, a small town of Latium, near the Pomptine
Marshes; its site is unknown.
121. The people of Urbinum; there were two places of that name in
Umbria, now called Urbeno and Urbania.
122. The name probably by which the city was called in the mystical
language of the priesthood. It has been said that this mysterious name
of Rome was Valentia; if so, it appears to be only a translation of her
name Græcized—(Rw/mh, "strength." This subject will be found again
mentioned in B. xxviii. c. 4.
123. Solinus says that he was put to death as a punishment for his rashness. M. Sichel has suggested that this mysterious name was no other
than Angerona.
124. It is not known whether this mystical divinity was the goddess of
anguish and fear, or of silence, or whether she was the guardian deity of
Rome. Julius Modestus says that she relieved men and cattle when
visited by the disease called "angina," or "quinsy," whence her name.
125. The Carmental, the Roman, and the Pandanian or Saturnian gates,
according to Varro.
126. Titus was saluted Imperator after the siege of Jerusalem, and was
associated with his father Vespasian in the government. They also acted
together as Censors.
127. The Lares Compitales presided over the divisions of the city, which
were marked by the compita or points where two or more streets crossed
each other, and where 'ædiculæ' or small chapels were erected in their
honour. Statues of these little divinities were erected at the corner of
every street. It was probably this custom which first suggested the idea
of setting up images of the Virgin and Saints at the corners of the streets,
which are still to be seen in many Roman Catholic countries at the present day.
128. This was a gilded column erected by Augustus in the Forum, and
called "milliarium aureum;" on it were inscribed the distances of the
principal points to which the "viæ" or high-roads conducted.
129. Supposing the circuit of the city to have been as he says, 13 2/5 miles, he
must either make a great miscalculation here, or the text must be very corrupt. The average diameter of the city would be in such case about 4 1/2 miles,
the average length of each radius drawn from the mile-column 2 1/4 miles,
and the total amount 83 1/4 miles, whereas he makes it but 20 3/4 miles,
or little better than an average of half-a-mile for each radius. We may also
remark that the camp of the Prætorian cohorts here mentioned was
established by the emperor Tiberius, by the advice of Sejanus. Ajasson's
translation makes the measurement to be made to twelve gates only, but
the text as it stands will not admit of such a construction.
130. The Aventine, Cælian, and Quirinal hills.
131. Such as Ocriculum, Tibur, Aricia, &c.
132. Near Antium. Casale di Conca stands on its site.
133. Suæssa Pometia. It was destroyed by the consul Servilius, and its
site was said, with that of twenty-two other towns, to have been covered
by the Pomptine Marsh, to which it gave its name.
134. A town of Latium destroyed by Ancus Martius.
135. An ancient city of Latium, conquered by Romulus; on which occasion he slew its king Acron and gained the spolia opima. Nibby suggests that it stood on the Magugliano, two miles south-east of Monte
Gentile. Holstein says that it stood where the present Sant' Angelo or
Monticelli stands.
136. Also destroyed by Ancus Martius. A farm called Dragonello,
eleven miles from Rome, is supposed to have stood upon its site. Tellene was also destroyed by the same king. Tifata was a town of Campania.
137. A city of Latium, which was conquered by Tarquinius Priscus. It
has been suggested that its ruins are visible about a mile to the north of
Monte Sant' Angelo.
138. A Sabine town, the people of which were incorporated by Tarquinius
Priscus with the Roman citizens. It is supposed to have stood on the
present Monte Sant' Angelo.
139. An ancient city of Latium, subdued by Tarquinius Priscus, on which
occasion Ocrisia, the mother of Servius Tullius, fell into the hands of the
Romans as a captive. It was probably situate on one of the isolated
hills that rise from the plain of the Campagna.
140. Both Virgil and Ovid allude to this tradition.
141. Said to have been so called from being "opposite" to the ancient
city of Saturnia. The Janiculus or Janiculum was a fortress on the
opposite bank of the Tiber, and a suburb of Rome, connected with it by
the Sublician bridge.
142. A very ancient city situate three miles from Rome, and said to have
been so called from its position on the Tiber, ante amnem. In the
time of Strabo it had become a mere village. It stood at the confluence
of the Anio and the Tiber.
143. An ancient city of Latium reduced by Tarquinius Priscus. It has
been suggested that the town of Palombara, near the foot of Monte
Gennaro, stands on its site.
144. An ancient city of Latium. It probably gradually fell into decay.
Lucius Tarquinius, the husband of Lucretia, is represented as dwelling here
during the siege of Ardea. Its site is thought by some to have been at
Castellaccio or Castel dell' Osa, and by others at Lunghezza, which is
perhaps the most probable conjecture.
145. An ancient city of the Sabines. Its ruins are visible at San Vittorino,
a village near Aquila.
146. An ancient town of the Volsci, five leagues from Velletri. Sermonata now stands on its site. It must not be confounded with the town
of the Peligni, the birth-place of Ovid.
147. "Populi Albenses." It does not appear to be exactly known what
is the force of this expression, but he probably means either colonies from
Alba, or else nations who joined in the confederacy of which Alba was the
principal. Niebuhr looks upon them as mere demi or boroughs of the
territory of Alba.
148. "Accipere carnem." Literally, "to take the flesh." It appears that
certain nations, of which Alba was the chief, were in early times accustomed to meet on the Alban Mount for the purposes of sacrifice. The
subject is full of obscurity, but it has been suggested that this minor confederacy co-existed with a larger one including all the Latin cities, and
there can be little doubt that the common sacrifice was typical of a bond
of union among the states that partook therein. It does not necessarily
appear from the context that more than the thirty-one states after mentioned took part therein, though the text may be so construed as to imply
that the Latin nations previously mentioned also shared in the sacrifice;
if so, it would seem to imply that Alba was the chief city of the whole
Latin confederacy. See this subject ably discussed in Dr. Smith's Dictionary of Ancient Geography, under the article Latini.
149. The people of Æsulæ. Of this Latin city nothing is known. The
territory is mentioned by Horace, and Gell places its site on the Monte
Affiliano.
150. The people of Bubentum. Nothing is known of this Latin city or
of the preceding ones.
151. Bola was an ancient city of Latium, taken successively by Coriolanus
and M. Postumius. Its site is supposed to have been five miles from
the modern Palestrina, at the modern village of Lugnano.
152. The people of Corioli. It was probably a Latian town, but fell
into the possession of the Volsci, from whom it was taken by Cn. Marcius,
who thence obtained the name of "Coriolanus." Monte Giove, nineteen
miles from Rome, has been suggested as its site.
153. Pliny is supposed to be in error in representing Fidenæ, the early
antagonist of Rome, as being extinct in his time, and he will be found in
the sequel reckoning it in the Fourth Region. This ancient Latian town
never lost its municipal rank, though it had no doubt in his time become a
mere country town. The present Castel Giubileo is supposed to be
situate on its site.
154. The people of Horta, a town of Etruria, now Horte. Many Etruscan
remains have been discovered there.
155. The people of Longula, a Volscian town. Buon Riposo now occupies its site.
156. The people of Pedum; nothing is known of it. The rest of these
nations are either almost or entirely unknown.
157. This was an ancient town between Pompeii and Surrentum. After
its overthrow, as mentioned by Pliny, it was in some measure rebuilt,
possibly after this passage was penned. It was finally destroyed by the
great eruption of Vesuvius in the year A.D. 79, and it was here that
our author breathed his last.
158. A town three miles west of Capua. It was of much importance as a
military position, and played a considerable part in the second Punic war.
The period of its final destruction is unknown; but modern Capua is
built on its site.
159. This city took the lead in the war of the Latin cities against Tarquinius Priscus. Gell and Nibby think that it was situate about eleven
miles from Rome, a mile to the south of the Appian way, where there
are some remains that indicate the site of an ancient city, near the stream
called the Fosso delle Fratocche. Livy tells us that with the spoils
thence derived, Tarquinius celebrated the Ludi Magni for the first time.
160. Opposite Capreæ, and situate on the Promontory of Minerva. Sorrento now stands on its site.
161. The modern Silaro; it was the boundary between Lucania and
Campania, and rises in the Apennines.
162. A town in the south of Campania, at the head of the Gulf of
Pæstum. In consequence of the aid which they gave to Hannibal, the
inhabitants were forced to abandon their town and live in the adjoining
villages. The name of Picentini was given, as here stated, to the inhabitants of all the territory between the Promontory of Minerva and the
river Silarus. They were a portion of the Sabine Picentes, who were
transplanted thither after the conquest of Picenum, B.C. 268. The modern Vicenza stands on its site.
163. The Argonaut. Probably this was only a vague tradition.
164. By using the genitive 'Salerni,' he would seem to imply that the
Roman colony of Salernum then gave name to the district of which Picentia was the chief town. Ajasson however has translated it merely
"Salernum and Picentia." 'Intus' can hardly mean "inland," as
Picentia was near the coast, and so was Salernum.
165. This was an ancient town of Campania, at the innermost corner of
the Gulf of Pæstum, situate near the coast, on a height at the foot of
which lay its harbour. It attained great prosperity, as Salerno, in the
middle ages, and was noted for its School of Health established there;
which issued periodically rules for the preservation of health in Latin
Leonine verse.