Pontecagnano Faiano (also known simply as Pontecagnano) is a town and ''

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 the

province of Salerno The Province of Salerno ( it, Provincia di Salerno) is a province in the Campania region of Italy. __TOC__ Geography The largest towns in the province are: Salerno, the capital, which has a population of 131,950; Cava de' Tirreni, Battipagli ...

in the

Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...

region of south-west

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 ...

. 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.

Geography

Located in the south-eastern suburb of Salerno, the municipality is formed by the towns of Pontecagnano (main center and municipal seat), Faiano (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 ancien ...

Bellizzi Bellizzi is a town and comune in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. History Bellizzi was a ''frazione'' of Montecorvino Rovella until 2 January 1990, when it became a comune following a referendum held in 1 ...

Giffoni Valle Piana Giffoni Valle Piana, commonly known as Giffoni, is a town and comune in the Province of Salerno, Campania, southwestern Italy. Economy is mostly based on agriculture, with the presence of a small number of light industries and services firms. Hi ...

Montecorvino Pugliano Montecorvino Pugliano is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-west Italy. The communal seat is in Pugliano; no settlement in the municipality is called "Montecorvino", a toponym related to the nearby com ...

and Salerno. 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 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

, next to the

Monti Picentini 300px, Rocky limestone landscape in the monti Picentini. The Monti Picentini is a mountain range and national park in southern Italy, part of the Apennines, traditionally part in the Campanian Apennines. They are included between the Monti Latta ...

. 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 (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 The Villanovan culture (c. 900–700 BC), regarded as the earliest phase of the Etruscan civilization, was the earliest Iron Age culture of Italy. It directly followed the Bronze Age Proto-Villanovan culture which branched off from the Urnfiel ...

, predecessor to the

Etruscans The Etruscan civilization () was developed by a people of Etruria in ancient Italy with a common language and culture who formed a federation of city-states. After conquering adjacent lands, its territory covered, at its greatest extent, rou ...

, 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 to the Silaurus (Sele) River. It was known for a temple of the Argive

Juno Juno commonly refers to: *Juno (mythology), the Roman goddess of marriage and queen of the gods *Juno (film), ''Juno'' (film), 2007 Juno may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional characters *Juno, in the film ''Jenny, Juno'' *Ju ...

reputedly built by

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He ...

. Here, in 268 BC, the Romans built a new town, Picentia, to house a nucleus of deported

Piceni The name Picentes or Picentini refers to the population of Picenum, on the northern Adriatic coastal plain of ancient Italy. Their endonym, if any, is not known for certain. There is linguistic evidence that the Picentini comprised two different ...

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

3.9

Transport

Salerno Costa d'Amalfi Airport The Salerno - Costa d'Amalfi Airport , located in the municipality of Pontecagnano Faiano and close to Bellizzi, is an airport in southern Italy, in Salerno city and the west coastal areas of Amalfi to the north and Cilento to the south. It i ...

References

External links

Official website
Cities and towns in Campania Villanovan culture {{Campania-geo-stub

Geography

History

See also

Transport

References

External links