Pontecagnano Faiano (also known simply as Pontecagnano) is a town and ''
comune'' of the
province of Salerno in the
Campania region of south-west
Italy. The area dates back to Roman times when the city of Picentia stood in the place and was destroyed by the Romans after the
Second Punic War
The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of three wars fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Ital ...
.
Geography
Located in the south-eastern suburb of
Salerno
Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
, the municipality is formed by the towns of Pontecagnano (main center and municipal seat),
Faiano
Faiano is an Italian town and hamlet (''frazione'') of the municipality of Pontecagnano Faiano in the province of Salerno, Campania region. Along with the main town of Pontecagnano it is ''de jure'' the secondary seat of its municipality.
History ...
(a little hilltown, secondary seat) and by the villages of Baroncino, Corvinia, Magazzeno, Pagliarone, Picciola and Sant'Antonio a Picenzia. It borders with
Battipaglia
Battipaglia () is a municipality ('' comune'') in the province of Salerno, Campania, south-western Italy.
Famed as a production place of buffalo mozzarella, Battipaglia is the economic hub of the Sele plain.
History
Formerly part of the an ...
,
Bellizzi,
Giffoni Valle Piana,
Montecorvino Pugliano and
Salerno
Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
.
The town of Pontecagnano is the municipal seat and the most populated settlement of the ''comune''. It is situated close to the urban area of
Salerno
Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
and few kilometers by the coast.
The village of Faiano, the co-official administrative seat, is located few kilometers of Pontecagnano on the hills on the road to
Montecorvino Pugliano, next to the
Monti Picentini. It is locally known to be rich of water.
The civil parishes are Magazzeno (by the coast), Picciola (close to the airport of Salerno), Sant'Antonio a Picenzia (close to Pontecagnano) and Baroncino (between Pontecagnano and Faiano).
History
The area of Pontecagnano was settled as early as the
Copper Age
The Copper Age, also called the Chalcolithic (; from grc-gre, χαλκός ''khalkós'', "copper" and ''líthos'', "stone") or (A)eneolithic (from Latin '' aeneus'' "of copper"), is an archaeological period characterized by regular ...
(3500-2300 BC), as testified by the archaeological excavations of two sanctuaries and two necropolises. In the 9th-8th centuries BC remains belonging to the
Villanovan Culture, predecessor to the
Etruscans, have been found.
The Etruscan center was perhaps called Amina and dated to the 6th century BC. At the height of its power it ruled all the land from
Salerno
Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
to the Silaurus (Sele) River. It was known for a temple of the Argive
Juno reputedly built by
Jason. Here, in 268 BC, the Romans built a new town, Picentia, to house a nucleus of deported
Piceni.
[ Pliny 3.9]
See also
*
Salerno-Pontecagnano Airport
*
National Archeologic Museum of Pontecagnano
Transport
*
Salerno Costa d'Amalfi Airport
References
External links
Official website
Cities and towns in Campania
Villanovan culture
{{Campania-geo-stub