Saepinum (modern Altilia, near

Sepino Sepino is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Campobasso in the Italian region Molise, located about south of Campobasso. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful villages of Italy"). The archaeological site of ...

) was a Samnite town that later became a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

municipium In ancient Rome, the Latin term (: ) referred to a town or city. Etymologically, the was a social contract among ('duty holders'), or citizens of the town. The duties () were a communal obligation assumed by the in exchange for the privileges ...

. Located approximately south of the modern city of

Campobasso Campobasso (, ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in southern Italy, the capital of the region of Molise and of the province of Campobasso. It is located in the high basin of the Biferno river, surrounded by Sannio and Matese mountains. Campobas ...

in south-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 ...

, Saepinum lay on the ancient road connecting Beneventum (modern Benevento) to

Corfinium Corfinium (Greek: ) was an ancient city now near modern Corfinio, in the province of L'Aquila (Abruzzo region). During the Social War (91-87 BC), Corfinium served as the headquarters of the Italic socii who fought for the extension of Rom ...

(modern Corfinio).

History

The original town of Saepinum is located on a mountain far above the Roman town, with remnants of its Cyclopean masonry walls still visible. Captured by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

in 293 BC, the Roman town's walls, constructed in ''opus reticulatum'', were erected by

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus ( ; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was Roman emperor from AD 14 until 37. He succeeded his stepfather Augustus, the first Roman emperor. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC to Roman politician Tiberius Cl ...

before he became emperor, dating to between 2 BC and 4 AD, as indicated by an inscription. Within the city walls, there are remains of a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

and other buildings, including temples of

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and

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. There still exists, by the gate leading to Bovianum, an important inscription of about 168 AD, relating to the ''tratture'' (see

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

) in Roman days, forbidding the natives to harm the shepherds who passed along them. Tombs from the 4th century found within the city walls indicate that Saepinum was largely abandoned by that time. Following the collapse of the

Western Roman Empire In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...

, Saepinum was taken in 882 by

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...

.Jeff Matthews
Saepinum

Archaeology

The archaeological area of Saepinum, approximately 12 hectares wide, is surrounded by a wall in which four monumental gates open, located at the entrance to the two main road arteries, each flanked by two circular towers. The layout of the walls and the orientation of the gates are dictated by the layout of the pre-existing main road system of the site, which then formed the cardo and the decumanus.

City wall

The perimeter of the walls is made up of a sequence of curtains, always rigidly rectilinear and of variable length, interrupted by circular towers arranged at a distance of 80 - 120 feet from each other. Currently only part of the wall is exposed. Over the years, steps have been taken to restore and consolidate the structures brought to light, restoring some sections of elevation through the reuse of ancient collapsed material. In the sections not affected by the excavation, the route is marked by scattered cement cores and short sections of masonry. Overall, the city wall appears to be an accurate work of good military engineering. The material used is Matese limestone, cut into small blocks and shaped into the shape of small pyramids, with an undifferentiated, square or rectangular base. The facing of the curtains has a uniform thickness (approximately 1.80 m) and is woven with the reticulate technique, with a homogeneous cement mortar. The masonry is solid, with a height of approximately m. 4.80 and has a patrol path at the top. The quality of the weaving appears uniform and constant, and suggests a single construction phase. The city wall is equipped with a system of circular towers, of which only nineteen towers remain visible, brought to light during the excavation campaign of the years 1950-1955. They protrude for about three meters both outside, towards the countryside, and inside, towards the city. The thickness of the external walls is greater than the internal one. They all have a diameter of approximately seven meters and a height of almost eleven, with an external facing in opus reticulatum. The structure of the towers is solidly interlocked with that of the curtains, and this demonstrates the contextual nature of the construction of the walls and towers. Three small slits, distributed on the external surface of the tower, guaranteed the defensive coverage of the area in front of the walls, three small windows were open on the internal side to control the urban area. Currently, only the basic structures remain of some towers, covered with ancient material mixed with backfill, of others, especially on the north-west side, part of the elevation has been rebuilt, recovering the ancient materials, and has been consolidated structure.

Gate

The four doors that open at the junction of the two main road arteries, the cardo and the decumanus, conventionally take their name based on their orientation; they repeat the same planimetric scheme in the layout, the classic one of the city gate with a single round arch, approximately m high. 4.80, closed by a sliding wooden shutter, operated from above, with two circular towers flanking the opening. Behind the door is the cavaedium, a rectangular security courtyard, built for obvious defensive needs, closed by walls, open to the sky, with a double door leading to the city. To the left of the door a stone staircase leads to the patrol walk on the city walls, and to the maneuvering room of the portcullis.

References

External links

*Jeff Matthews

*Michael Frank, "A Rarity Among Roman Towns," ''New York Times'', December 23, 1990, web

* Roman towns and cities in Italy Archaeological sites in Molise Former populated places in Italy National museums of Italy Basilicas in Italy {{Molise-geo-stub