Triponzo is a ''

frazione A ''frazione'' (: ''frazioni'') is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' ('municipality') in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidat ...

'' 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

Cerreto di Spoleto Cerreto di Spoleto is an Italian village and ''comune'' of the province of Perugia in Umbria. It is a dispersed rural community with 1,158 inhabitants spread over 8 ''frazioni''. Villages Ponte di Cerreto is a village of about 200 inhabit ...

in the

Province of Perugia The province of Perugia () is the larger of the two provinces in the Umbria region of Italy, comprising two-thirds of both the area and population of the region. Its capital is the city of Perugia. The province covered all of Umbria until 1927, w ...

Umbria Umbria ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region of central Italy. It includes Lake Trasimeno and Cascata delle Marmore, Marmore Falls, and is crossed by the Tiber. It is the only landlocked region on the Italian Peninsula, Apennine Peninsula. The re ...

, 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 ...

. It stands at an elevation of 420 metres above sea level. At the time of the

Istat The Italian National Institute of Statistics (; Istat) is the primary source of official statistics in Italy. The institute conducts a variety of activities, including the census of population, economic censuses, and numerous social, economic, a ...

census of 2001 it had 45 inhabitants. The name of the town must surely derive from Latin ''*Tripontium'', meaning "three bridges", presumably one over each branch of the rivers; but no Roman bridge has survived. It is famous among

epigraphers Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

for 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 ...

inscription Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

(CIL IX.4541 =

ILLRP Attilio Degrassi (Trieste, 21 June 1887 – Rome, 1 June 1969) was an archeologist and pioneering Italian scholar of Latin epigraphy. Degrassi taught at the university of Padova where he trained, among others, the epigraphist Silvio Panciera, ...

1275a), carved in the live rock on the outer face of the modern SS 209 road tunnel a few hundred metres W of the town, which records the building of the Roman road from

Spoletium Spoleto (, also , , ; ) is an ancient city in the Italian province of Perugia in east-central Umbria on a foothill of the Apennines. It is south of Trevi, north of Terni, southeast of Perugia; southeast of Florence; and north of Rome. Hist ...

Nursia Norcia (), traditionally known in English by its Latin name of Nursia (), is a town and comune in the province of Perugia (Italy) in southeastern Umbria. Unlike many ancient towns, it is located in a wide plain abutting the Monti Sibillini, a su ...

by order of the

Roman Senate The Roman Senate () was the highest and constituting assembly of ancient Rome and its aristocracy. With different powers throughout its existence it lasted from the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in 753 BC) as the Sena ...

. Triponzo is also notable for at least one medieval church, S. Caterina, and sulphureous springs, about 1.5 km (1 mi) NE of town, the water of which is considered to have therapeutic properties: a combination spa and hydroelectric facility have been under construction here since the late 20th century. The famous Valnerina (Valley of the Nera River) in Umbria was characterized by more than 50 medieval fortifications with watchtowers. Over the years, most of the towers were lost due to war and seismic events. The tower of Triponzo was the largest of these lying at the crux of two important valleys. Built in the 1300s it was badly damaged during the earthquake of September 1997. Given that it was one of the few remaining structures, the authorities expressed the desire to see it rebuilt in part to cancel traumatic events from memory however rebuilding the tower would have required its total demolition and removing the fallen parts would have meant an unacceptable risk for the workers. With the help of modern building technology, a new project was created by Architects Martin Stubenrauch, Moreno Orazi and Engineer Fabrizio Menghini. The fallen tower parts were stabilized, the facade preserved and a monumental modern steel spine was added to uphold and re-identify the monument in modern terms. Today the tower leaps into view upon approaching the town by roadway. The tower is unique in its bold approach to historic reconstruction. CerretoDiSpoletoTriponzoBorgo3.jpg, Borgo Triponzo and the road to Cerreto di Spoleto CerretoDiSpoletoTriponzoCastello4.jpg, The castle ruin CerretoDiSpoletoTriponzoSantaCaterina4.jpg, The church Santa Caterina CerretoDiSpoletoTriponzoMadonnaDellaGrazieCarmine2.jpg, The church Madonna delle Grazie

External links

Triponzo at LacusCurtius
with photograph of the inscription ''(This entry incorporates text from LacusCurtius, by permission.)''

References

{{authority control Frazioni of the Province of Perugia Cities and towns in Umbria Roman sites of Umbria