Grumentum ( grc, Γρούμεντον) was an ancient

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 ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

city in the centre of

Lucania Lucania was a historical region of Southern Italy. It was the land of the Lucani, an Oscan people. It extended from the Tyrrhenian Sea to the Gulf of Taranto. It bordered with Samnium and Campania in the north, Apulia in the east, and Bruttiu ...

, in what is now the ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' of Grumento Nova, c. south of

Potenza Potenza (, also , ; , Potentino dialect: ''Putenz'') is a ''comune'' in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata (former Lucania). Capital of the Province of Potenza and the Basilicata region, the city is the highest regional capital and one ...

by the direct road through Anxia, and by the ''

Via Herculia Via or VIA may refer to the following: Science and technology * MOS Technology 6522, Versatile Interface Adapter * ''Via'' (moth), a genus of moths in the family Noctuidae * Via (electronics), a through-connection * VIA Technologies, a Taiwan ...

'', at the point of divergence of a road eastward to Heraclea. The main public buildings of the city have been excavated and are in excellent condition.

History

The first Lucanian settlements in the area date from the 6th century BC. The site was founded by the Romans in the 3rd century BC during the

Samnite Wars The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars (343–341 BC, 326–304 BC, and 298–290 BC) were fought between the Roman Republic and the Samnites, who lived on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains south of Rome and north of the Lucanian tribe ...

as a fortified vanguard. The position was chosen to control important routes (one of which became the via Herculia in the late 200s AD). In 215 BC the Carthaginian general Hanno was defeated under its walls at the

Battle of Grumentum The Battle of Grumentum was fought in 207 BC between Romans led by Gaius Claudius Nero, and a part of Hannibal's Carthaginian army. The battle was a minor Roman victory, and Nero marched north where he defeated and killed Hannibal's brother Has ...

, but in 207 BC

Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Pu ...

made it his headquarters. In the Social War it was a strong fortress, and seems to have been held by both sides at different times but was sacked by Italic tribes. It became a ''

colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state' ...

'', perhaps in the time of

Sulla Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He won the first large-scale civil war in Roman history and became the first man of the Republic to seize power through force. Sulla had t ...

, at the latest under

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...

, and became important. St. Laverius was martyred here in 312 AD. In 370 AD Grumentum became a bishopric but soon afterwards it began to be abandoned. Due to the Saracen inroads (9th–10th centuries), in 954 a new town (''Saponara'' or ''Saponaria'', the modern Grumento Nova) was founded.

The Site

The site is a ridge on the right bank of the Aciris (

Agri Agri may refer to: Places * Ağrı Province, eastern Turkey ** Ağrı, the capital city of the province * Ağrı, the Turkish name for Mount Ararat in Turkey * Ağrı Subregion, Turkey, a statistical subregion * Ağrı (electoral district), an ...

) about above sea-level, c. below the modern Grumento Nova, which lies much higher at 772 m. Grumentum-amphitheater-c

Its ruins include those of a large amphitheatre (arena 62.5 m x 60 m, 1st century BC), the only one in

. There are also remains of a theatre. Inscriptions record the repair of its town walls and the construction of thermae (of which remains were found) in 57–51 BC, the construction in 43 BC, of a

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cul ...

, remains of which may be seen along an ancient road, at right angles to the main road, which traversed Grumentum from south to north. A ''domus'' with 4th century mosaics is also present, as well as two small temples of imperial times. Outside the walls monumental tombs, a Palaeo-Christian basilica and an aqueduct have been found. The aqueduct had its source about 5 km further south and entered the town on the southern side of the plateau. It was transported on arches and emptied into a ''

Castellum Aquae A ''castellum'' in Latin is usually: * a small Roman fortlet or tower,C. Julius Caesar, Gallic War; 2,30 a diminutive of (' military camp'), often used as a watchtower or signal station like on Hadrian's Wall. It should be distinguished from a ...

'' of which some ruins remain. Many of the finds can be seen in the Archaeological Museum of Grumento Nova.

References

External links

Information about Grumentum given by the Agenzia di Promozione Territoriale di Basilicata
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20130306101243/http://www.museoarcheologicogrumento.beniculturali.it/ Official website of the Museo Archeologico Nazionale dell’Alta Val d’Agri di Grumento Nova
Description of Grumentum on the website of the Parco Nazionale dell'Appennino Lucano Val d'Agri – Lagonegrese
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Photos of Grumentum
Roman sites of Basilicata Former populated places in Italy Archaeological sites in Basilicata