Walk III 

Fulginiae and San Bartolomeo di Marano

Roman Fulginiae

The picture above is taken from the east of the city, and specifically from Via Rubicone, which roughly follows the line of Via Flaminia.  The Romans probably drained the Lacus Umber here in ca. 220 BC to facilitate the construction of this road.   The local people, whom the Romans called the Fulginates, seem to have gravitated to this reclaimed land and to have built a city on it that the Romans called Fulginiae, Fulginia or Fulginium.  What is known about the history of this city comes from Roman sources, which describe it as a city in the plain that had no defensive walls. 

Fulginiae was attacked and plundered by Saracens in 881 and by Hungarians in 915 and 924.  These and other misfortunes must have undermined the stability of the diocese because, at some time in the 11th century, the seat of the bishop was moved across the river to the site of the present city.  The site of the Roman city was used as agricultural land until its development in the 1960s.

The layout of the city is difficult to ascertain, since its location was only ascertained with certainty in the 1980s.  Earlier sporadic finds were scarcely documented so their original contexts are unknown.  The most interesting of these is a bronze figure of Hercules at rest (3rd century BC), which was discovered in the 19th century.  This is now in the Louvre , Paris, and is illustrated in the museum website. 

The Walk

The detour begins at Porta Romana (see Walk I).

Walk through the gate and across the road into Viale Roma (with Caffé River on your right and shady trees along the footpath on the left). 

Take the first turn on the left, along Via Santa Maria in Campis.  This takes you under the railway line and then turns back to run parallel to it before turning sharply right.  A group of Roman houses was discovered just before this turn in 1890, during work associated with the building of the railway.

Continue along Via Santa Maria in Campis.  Turn left along Via Costantini, right along Via Vitelli and left into Piazza del Risorgimento, which is at the centre of a housing development that was carried out in the 1960s.

Excavations in the piazza in 1998 unearthed a stretch  of Roman road that probably belonged to a connecting link between the two branches of Via Flaminia.   Traces of this road can be seen to your right.

There were 22 tombs along one side of the road, and a  horde of over 3,000 silver coins (1st century BC) that had been buried in a leather sack was found nearby.  A votive bronze (ca. 500 BC) was also found during this excavation, which suggests that there was an ancient sanctuary nearby (see below).  Finds from the excavation (including the votive bronze) are exhibited in the Museo Archeologico.

Continue in the direction of this road and between a gap in the houses.  The site of ahead, across a sandy lane, belongs to Roman domus that was excavated in 1968.  Parts of the mosaic pavement from this building are exhibited in the Museo Archeologico (Rooms 8 and 9)

Turn right along the lane and follow it as it turns right (before the main road).  Turn right at the end and continue to Santa Maria in Campis on your left.

Turn left on leaving the church, along Via Vecchia Flaminia, which does indeed follow the line of the Roman road.  Traces of it were discovered in 1970 during work to extend the cemetery next to the church.  A necropolis of some 180 tombs (1st - 3rd centuries AD) extended along it.  Finds from this necropolis are exhibited in the Museo Archeologico.

Retrace your steps to Santa Maria in Campis and continue ahead along Via Rubicone.  This roughly follows the line of Via Flaminia, which skirted Roman Fulginiae (on your left).  The picture above was taken from this road, and you pass a board on the left that describes the excavations that have been carried out in the area. 

Continue to the junction with Via Po.  Villa Sassonia, (16th century), which is at number 7 on the right, stands on what is thought to have been the site of a Roman theatre. 

Take a short detour by turning right along Via Po to the end of the fence on the left, which encloses the archaeological area.  Six tombs (6th – 5th centuries BC) that were discovered here in 1976 belonged to an Umbrian necropolis.  This was probably on the edge of the lake that the Romans drained for Via Flaminia.  Grave goods from this necropolis are exhibited in the Museo Archeologico:  the discovery of the small votive bronze in nearby Piazza Risorgimento (see above) suggests that there was a sanctuary associated with this necropolis.

Return to and continue along Via Rubicone.  Aerial photographs suggest that the amphitheatre was on the left, just beyond junction.  Continue to the junction with Via di Chienti.  A Roman domus was excavated in 1934 at the house on the right here (number 1 Via Rubicone).   Some of its mosaic flooring, which was exhibited in Palazzo Trinci, was destroyed in the bombardment of 1944.

The Fosso Renaro, beyond and parallel to Via di Chienti, probably marked the northern boundary of the Roman city and Ponte d' Antimo ahead must be near the site of a Roman bridge that took Via Flaminia across it.

If you want to continue to San Bartolomeo di Marano (which you can alternatively visit at the end of the hike from Belfiore to Foligno) turn right along Via di Chienti.  Take the first turning on the right (at the city limit) and stay on the pavement on the right as it takes you across the  busy main road (under a slip road, over the main road and under another slip road).    Continue ahead to the T-junction with Via Sassovivo and turn right along it.  (The high iron gate on your right will be a landmark for your return).  You can soon see San Bartolomeo ahead: Via Paoluccio Trinci on the right leads up to it. 

Retrace your steps to Via di Chienti and continue past the junction with Via Rubicone.  The road becomes Via Piave: stay on the left and follow it under two railway lines. 

Cross the two main roads:

• Viale Cesare Battisti/Via IV Novembre outside the line of the 14th century city walls; and

• Via Oberdan/Via Bolletta  inside this line. 

This was the site of Porta Badia (Porta Loreto or Porta Ancona), which was demolished in 1930.  The canalised Menotre river in front of it was diverted underground in 1989: you can see part of its channel on your left.  [There is a long stretch of wall to the right that has recently been restored.]

Continue along Via Garibaldi back to the centre of the city (as in Walk I), where the walk ends.

Return to the home page on Foligno.