Eretum (

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

: ), was an ancient town of the

Sabine The Sabines (, , , ; ) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains (see Sabina) of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines divided int ...

s, situated on the

Via Salaria The Via Salaria was an ancient Roman road in Italy. It eventually ran from Rome (from Porta Salaria of the Aurelian Walls) to ''Castrum Truentinum'' ( Porto d'Ascoli) on the Adriatic coast, a distance of 242 km. The road also passed throu ...

, at its junction with the

Via Nomentana The Via Nomentana was an ancient Roman road in Italy, leading North-East from Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio ...

, a short distance from the

Tiber The Tiber ( ; ; ) is the List of rivers of Italy, third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the R ...

, and about from

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

History

Eretum lay near the frontier between Roman and Sabine territory in the regal period and early Republic.

Solinus __NOTOC__ Gaius Julius Solinus, better known simply as Solinus, was a Latin grammarian, geographer, and compiler who probably flourished in the early 3rd century AD. Historical scholar Theodor Mommsen dates him to the middle of the 3rd century. ...

writes that it was established by Greeks in honor of

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; ; in Ionic Greek, Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women, and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she is queen of the twelve Olympians and Mount Oly ...

, and thus the name of the city (which he calls "Heretum") derives from her name. From the mention of its name by

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

among the Sabine cities which joined in the war against

Aeneas In Greco-Roman mythology, Aeneas ( , ; from ) was a Troy, Trojan hero, the son of the Trojan prince Anchises and the Greek goddess Aphrodite (equivalent to the Roman Venus (mythology), Venus). His father was a first cousin of King Priam of Troy ...

, we may presume that it was considered as an ancient town, and one of some importance in early times. Eretum never bears any prominent part in history, though from its frontier position on the line by which the former people must advance upon Rome, it was the scene of repeated conflicts between the two nations. The first of these occurred in the reign of

Tullus Hostilius Tullus Hostilius (; r. 672–640 BC) was the legendary third king of Rome. He succeeded Numa Pompilius and was succeeded by Ancus Marcius. Unlike his predecessor, Tullus was known as a warlike king who, according to the Roman historian Livy, b ...

, during the war of that monarch with the Sabines; his successor

Tarquinius Priscus Lucius Tarquinius Priscus (), or Tarquin the Elder, was the legendary fifth king of Rome and first of its Etruscan dynasty. He reigned for thirty-eight years.Livy, '' ab urbe condita libri'', I Tarquinius expanded Roman power through military ...

also defeated the

Etruscans The Etruscan civilization ( ) was an ancient civilization created by the Etruscans, a people who inhabited Etruria in List of ancient peoples of Italy, ancient Italy, with a common language and culture, and formed a federation of city-states. Af ...

, who had taken advantage of the friendly disposition of the Sabines to advance through their territory, at Eretum; and

Tarquinius Superbus Lucius Tarquinius Superbus (died 495 BC) was the legendary seventh and final king of Rome, reigning 25 years until the popular uprising that led to the establishment of the Roman Republic.Livy, '' ab urbe condita libri'', I He is commonly ...

gained a decisive victory over the Sabines in the same neighbourhood. Under the

Roman republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

also we find two victories recorded over the Sabines at the same place, the one by the consuls Postumius and Menenius in 503 BCE, the other by

Gaius Nautius Rutilus Gaius Nautius Rutilus ( 475 – 457 BC) was a Roman politician who was consul of the Roman Republic from 475 BC until 474 BC and from 458 BC until 457 BC. Biography Nautius was probably the brother, or perhaps the son of Spurius Nautius Ruti ...

in 458 BCE. During the decemvirate also the Sabines established their headquarters at Eretum, whence they ravaged the Roman territory. It is again mentioned in the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Ancient Carthage, Carthage and Roman Republic, Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For ...

as the place whence

Hannibal Hannibal (; ; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Punic people, Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Ancient Carthage, Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War. Hannibal's fat ...

diverged to attack the shrine of

Feronia Feronia may mean: * Feronia (mythology), a goddess of fertility in Roman and Etruscan mythology * Feronia (plant), ''Feronia'' (plant), a genus of plants * Feronia Inc., a plantations company operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Fero ...

Etruria Etruria ( ) was a region of Central Italy delimited by the rivers Arno and Tiber, an area that covered what is now most of Tuscany, northern Lazio, and north-western Umbria. It was inhabited by the Etruscans, an ancient civilization that f ...

, during his advance on Rome (or, according to others, on his retreat) by the Salarian Way. But though its position thus brings it frequently into notice, it is clear that it was, under the Roman dominion at least, a very inconsiderable place.

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

says it was little more than a village, and

Valerius Maximus Valerius Maximus () was a 1st-century Latin writer and author of a collection of historical anecdotes: ' ("Nine books of memorable deeds and sayings", also known as ''De factis dictisque memorabilibus'' or ''Facta et dicta memorabilia''). He worke ...

terms it ''vicus Sabinae regionis''. Pliny does not even mention it among the towns of the Sabines, nor is its name found in the '' Liber Coloniarum'': hence it is almost certain that it did not enjoy municipal privileges, and was dependent on one of the neighbouring towns, probably Nomentum (modern

Mentana Mentana is a town and ''comune'', former bishopric and present Latin Catholic titular see in the Metropolitan City of Rome, Lazio, central Italy. It is located north-east of Rome and has a population of about 23,000. History Mentana is a town ...

). But its name is still found in the Itineraries as a station on the Salarian Way, and it must therefore have continued to exist as late as the fourth century. From this time all trace of it disappears.

Location

The position of Eretum has been a subject of much dispute, though the data furnished by ancient authorities are sufficiently precise. The Itineraries place it 18

Roman mile The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of length; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English ...

s from Rome; and Dionysius in one passage calls it 140 stadia (ca. ) from the city, though in another place he gives the same distance at only 107 stadia. Strabo adds that it was situated at the point of junction of the Via Salaria and Via Nomentana; a circumstance which could leave no doubt as to its position, but that there is some difficulty in tracing the exact course of the Via Salaria, which appears to have undergone repeated changes in ancient times. Hence Abbé Capmartin De Chaupy was led to fix the site of Eretum at a place called Rimane, where there were some Roman ruins near a bridge called the ''Ponte di Casa Cotta'', but this spot is not less than 21 miles from Rome; on the other hand,

Monterotondo Monterotondo is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome, central Italy. History According to some historians, Monterotondo is the heir of the ancient Sabine town of Eretum, although the modern settlement appeared in the 10th-11th c ...

, the site chosen by Cluverius, is little more than 15 miles from Rome, and could never by possibility have been on the Via Nomentana. Grotta Marozza (a ''

località A ''località'' is an inhabited place in Italy that is not accorded a more significant distinction in administrative law, such as a '' frazione'', ''comune'', '' municipio'', '' circoscrizione'', or ''quartiere''. The word is cognate to English ' ...

'' of the ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' of Mentana), on the left hand of the Via Nomentana, rather more than 3 miles beyond Nomentum, has therefore decidedly the best claim: it is 17.5 miles from Rome, and it is probable that the ancient Via Salaria did not follow the same line with the modern road of that name, but left the valley of the Tiber near Monte Rotondo, and joined the Via Nomentana near the spot above indicated. There are no ruins at Grotta Marozza, but the site is described as well-adapted for that of a town of small extent. At a short distance from Grotta Marozza are some sulphureous springs now known as the Bagni di Grotta Marozza, which are in all probability those anciently known as the Aquae Labanae (the of Strabo, who describes them as situated in the neighbourhood of Eretum).

References

* {{Coord, 42.1352, N, 12.7383, E, source:wikidata, display=title Sabine cities Former populated places in Italy

History

Location

See also

References