Carsoli (
Marsicano: ') is a town and ''
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 ...
'' in the
province of L'Aquila
The province of L'Aquila () is the largest, most mountainous and least densely populated Provinces of Italy, province of the Abruzzo region of Italy. It comprises about half the landmass of Abruzzo and occupies the western part of the region. It ...
,
Abruzzo
Abruzzo (, ; ; , ''Abbrìzze'' or ''Abbrèzze'' ; ), historically also known as Abruzzi, is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy with an area of 10,763 square km (4,156 sq mi) and a population of 1.3 million. It is divided into four ...
(central
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
). The ancient Roman city lies southwest of the modern town.
History
The ancient city, known as ''Carsioli'' (or ''Carseoli''), was founded in the country of the
Aequi between 302 and 298 BC, just after the establishment of
Alba Fucens, no doubt as a stronghold to guard the road to the latter. It is mentioned in 211 BC as one of the 12 of 30 Latin colonies that protested their inability to furnish more men or money for the war against
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 ...
. It is known that, in 168 BC, it was used as a place of confinement for political prisoners. It was sacked in the
Social War, but probably became a ''municipium'' after it. The 1st century agricultural writer
Columella
Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella (, Arabic: ) was a prominent Roman writer on agriculture in the Roman Empire.
His in twelve volumes has been completely preserved and forms an important source on Roman agriculture and ancient Roman cuisin ...
possessed estates there.
[
]
The modern town of Carsoli first appears in a diploma of 866 AD, but the old site does not seem to have been abandoned until the 13th century.
Main sights
The line of the city walls (originally in
tuff
Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock co ...
, and reconstructed in
limestone
Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
), built of rectangular blocks, can still be seen. There are remains of several ancient buildings, including the podium or base, of a temple, and also the ancient branch road from the
Via Valeria. The 43rd milestone of the Via Valeria still lies at or near its original site; it was set up by
Nerva
Nerva (; born Marcus Cocceius Nerva; 8 November 30 – 27 January 98) was a Roman emperor from 96 to 98. Nerva became emperor when aged almost 66, after a lifetime of imperial service under Nero and the succeeding rulers of the Flavian dynast ...
in 97 AD.
Some to the northwest of Carsoli are the remains of an ancient
aqueduct consisting of a buttressed wall of concrete crossing a valley.
Climate
See also
*
Castello di Carsoli
References
*
External links
Official website
T. Ashby and G. J. Pfeiffer in Supplementary Papers of the American School in Rome, Vol. I, pp. 108‑40, transcribed at LacusCurtius
LacusCurtius is the ancient Graeco-Roman part of a large history website, hosted as of March 2025 on a server at the University of Chicago. Starting in 1995, as of January 2004 it gave "access to more than 594 photos, 559 drawings and engravings, ...
.
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Marsica