Massa d'Albe is a ''

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 ...

'' and town in the

province of L'Aquila The Province of L'Aquila ( it, Provincia dell'Aquila) is the largest, most mountainous and least densely populated province of the Abruzzo region of Central Italy. It comprises about half the landmass of Abruzzo and occupies the western part of ...

in the Abruzzo region of central

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. It is part of the

Marsica Marsica is a geographical and historical region in the Abruzzo, central Italy, including 37 ''comuni'' in the province of L'Aquila. It is located between the plain of the former Fucine Lake, the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise, the pla ...

. The town was founded in the 14th century by the inhabitants of the ancient

Alba Fucens Alba Fucens was an ancient Italic town occupying a lofty location (1,000 m) at the foot of the Monte Velino, c. 6.5 km north of Avezzano, Abruzzo, central Italy. Its remains are today in the ''comune'' of Massa d'Albe. History It was ...

, whose remains are in the area. The current ''comune'' was formed after 1915 by the union of two former ''comuni'', Massa and Corona, destroyed by an earthquake.

Geography

The central nucleus of the inhabited area lies on the south-western slopes of

Mount Velino Monte Velino is a mountain (2,487 m) in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo, central Italy, part of the Abruzzo Apennines. Located nearby the boundary with Lazio, between the Fucino plain and the Aterno, Salto and Velino rivers' valleys ...

, one of the highest peaks of the central Apennines (2,487 m). Part of the territory is included in the

Sirente-Velino Regional Park The Sirente-Velino Regional Park (Italian: ''Parco regionale naturale del Sirente Velino'') is a regional park in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo, central Italy. It is centered on the Monte Velino and Monte Sirente massifs, including also the ...

and in the Monte Velino Natural Reserve. In a gorge of the mountainous group of Velino opens the Bocca di Teve (987 m) situated at the beginning of the homonymous valley that marks the border of Abruzzo with

Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

and with the Montagne della Duchessa Regional Reserve. The ''comune'' includes the built-up area of Massa and the ''frazioni'' of

and Forme. The

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology a ...

of Alba Fucens is situated few kilometers away from the communal chief town. The pass of Fonte Capo la Maina connects the territory to

Ovindoli Ovindoli ( Abruzzese: ') is a village and ''comune'' of the province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region of central Italy. Close to Rome, it is a resort for both summer and winter sports, including hiking, biking, equestrian activities and downhil ...

and to the

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area – a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In Nort ...

of Mount Magnola.

Geography

References

See also