Sights in Lazio
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Ostica Antica Ruins
The ruins are spread out and you’ll need at least a few hours. You can buy a handy site map from the ticket office (€2). Ostia was a busy working port until 42 AD, and the town is made up of restaurants, laundries, shops, houses and public meeting places, giving a good impression of what life must have been like when it was at its busiest. The main thoroughfare, the, Decumanus Maximus, runs over 1km from the city’s entrance (the Porta Romana) to the Porta Marina, which originally led to the sea. At one stage, Ostia had 20 baths complexes, including the Terme di Foro – these were equipped with a roomful of stone toilets (the forica) that remain largely intact. The mo…
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Necropoli di Banditaccia
You can get an hourly shuttle bus from the tourist information point to the Necropoli di Banditaccia, the tomb complex 2km out of town. The bus leaves seven to nine times per day starting at 8.20am and finishing at 6pm (earlier in winter). The trip takes five minutes and costs €1. Alternatively, follow the well-signposted road – it’s a pleasant 15-minute walk.
The 10-hectare necropolis is laid out as an afterlife townscape, with streets, squares and terraces of ‘houses’. The most common type of tomb is the tumulus, a circular structure cut into the earth and crowned by a cumulus – a topping of turf. Signs indicate which path to follow, and some of the major tombs, i…
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Necropolis
To see the famous painted tombs in situ, head for the necropolis. Almost 6000 tombs, of which 60 are painted, have been excavated since the first digs in 1489 – only a tiny section of the original area used for burying the dead, which stretched to the coast. Now protected by Unesco, the tombs have suffered centuries of exposure and are maintained at constant temperatures, and are visible only through glass partitions. There are some beautiful hunting and fishing scenes in the Tomba della Caccia e della Pesca; scenes featuring dancers, she-lions and dolphins in the Tomba delle Leonesse; and a surprising S&M scene of a man whipping a woman in the Tomba della Fustigazione (T…
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Museo Nazionale Tarquiniese
On the edge of the centro storico lies the exquisite 15th-century Palazzo Vitelleschi, which houses the Museo Nazionale Tarquiniese. Highlights of its collection include a breathtaking terracotta frieze of winged horses (the Cavalli Alati); a room full of painted tomb friezes; displays of sarcophagi, jewellery and amphorae; and some remarkably saucy ceramics in ground-floor Sala VI. Also on the ground floor, in Sala IX, the Sarcofogo con cerbiatto is a model of 4th-century BC workmanship, showing a half-naked reclining woman holding a plate from which a long-necked dog (the cerbiatto ) is drinking.
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Basilica di Santa Cristina
Bolsena’s few specific sights are in the medieval centre. In the 11th-century Basilica di Santa Cristina you’ll find four stones stained with miraculous blood. The church is named for the martyr, who was daughter of the local prefect and yet was tortured and finally killed for her faith – her story is re-enacted annually on July 23 and 24. Beneath the basilica are a series of catacombs (admission €4; 9.30am-noon & 3.30-6.30pm Easter-Sep, 9.30-11.30am & 3-4.30pm Oct-Easter), noteworthy for the number of tombs that are still sealed.
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Palazzo Farnese
A Renaissance wonder is the pentagonal Palazzo Farnese, with its internal circular courtyard. It’s at Caprarola, 20km southeast of Viterbo. The walls were started by a great military engineer, Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, then adapted by Vignal. The extraordinary interior contains painting by some of the finest Mannerist artists of the day. Don’t miss the frescoes by Taddeo and Federico Zuccari in the Sala del Concilio di Trento. Around six buses daily leave from the Riello bus station just outside Viterbo for Caprarola; tickets cost €2.
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Palazzo dei Priori
Viterbo’s walled centro storico is small and best covered on foot. The focal square, the Renaissance Piazza del Plebiscito, is dominated by the imposing Palazzo dei Priori. Now home to the town council, it’s worth venturing inside for the 16th-century frescoes that colourfully depict Viterbo’s ancient origins – the finest are in the Sala Regia on the 1st floor. Outside, the elegant courtyard and fountain were added two centuries after the palazzo (mansion) was built in 1460.
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Villa d’Este
In Tivoli’s hilltop centre, the gardens of Villa d’Este have an Alice in Wonderland magic, and are a superlative example of a High Renaissance garden. The villa was once a Benedictine convent, converted by Lucrezia Borgia’s son, Cardinal Ippolito d’Este, into a sumptuous pleasure palace in 1550. From 1865 to 1886 it was home to Franz Liszt and inspired his compositions To the Cypresses of the Villa d’Este and Fountains of the Villa d’Este. There is a stylish café-restaurant for a drink or lunch here.
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Villa Adriana
Emperor Hadrian’s summer residence Villa Adriana, 5km outside Tivoli, set new standards of luxury when it was built between AD 118 and 134, even given the excess of the Roman Empire. A model near the entrance gives you an idea of the scale of the original complex, which you’ll need several hours to explore. Consider hiring an audioguide (€4), which gives a helpful overview. There’s a small cafeteria next to the ticket office, but bringing a picnic would be nicer.
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Museo delle Navi Romani
The smaller of the two volcanic lakes in the Castelli Romani, Lago di Nemi was the centre of a cult to the goddess Diana in ancient times, and favourite holiday spot of the emperor Caligula. The Museo delle Navi Romani on the shore was built by Mussolini to house two Roman boats salvaged from the lake in 1932. These dated from Caligula’s time but were tragically destroyed by fire in 1944 – what you see now are scale models.
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Parco dei Mostri
At Bomarzo, 17km northeast of Viterbo, is a 16th-century pocket of weirdness that will entertain children and adults alike, the Parco dei Mostri. The gardens of the Palazzo Orsini is peopled by ancient gigantic sculptures, including an ogre, giant and a dragon. From Viterbo, catch the Cotral bus from near Viale Trieste to Bomarzo (€0.60, 30 minutes), then follow the signs to Palazzo Orsini.
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Museo Civico
On the other side of Viterbo, the Museo Civico features more Etruscan goodies, as well as curious fake antiquities created in the 15th century by Annius of Viterbo, a monk and forger trying to boost Viterbo’s reputation. There’s also a small art gallery, the highlight of which is Sebastiano del Piombo’s Pietà.
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Cattedrale di San Lorenzo
Built originally to a simple Romanesque design, it owes its current Gothic look to a 14th-century makeover; damage by Allied bombs meant the roof and nave had to be rebuilt. Next door, the Museo del Colle del Duomo displays a small collection of religious artefacts, including a reliquary said to contain the chin of John the Baptist.
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Museo Archeologico Nazionale
For a shot of Etruscan culture, head to the Museo Archeologico Nazionale, housed in an attractive palazzo by the northern entrance to Viterbo. It’s small, but has an interesting collection of artefacts discovered locally and, on the 1st floor, an impressive series of statues dedicated to the Muses.
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Palazzo dei Papi
On the northern side of Piazza San Lorenzo ,the 13th-century Palazzo dei Papi was built to entice the papacy away from Rome. Head up the stairs to the graceful Gothic loggia (colonnade) to peer into the Sala del Conclave, the hall where five popes were elected.
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Chiesa di San Francesco
The Chiesa di San Francesco is a Gothic church containing the tombs of two popes: Clement IV (d 1268) and Adrian V (d 1276). Both are attractively decorated, notably that of Adrian, which features Cosmati work (multicoloured marble and glass mosaics set into stone and white marble).
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Museo Archeologico di Sperlonga
Other than the beach, the Sperlonga’s main attraction is the Museo Archeologico di Sperlonga, home to sculptures and masks dating from the 2nd century BC and a cave with a circular pool used by the emperor Tiberius. The remains of his villa are in front of the cave.
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Parco Nazionale del Circeo
The Parco Nazionale del Circeo is a lovely 800-hectare area of sand dunes, rocky coastline, forest and wetlands. The visitor centre (0773 51 13 85) can provide details on local activities, including fishing, bird-watching, walking and cycling.
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Sala del Conclave
On the northern side of Piazza San Lorenzo, the 13th-century Palazzo dei Papi was built to entice the papacy away from Rome. Head up the stairs to the graceful Gothic loggia (colonnade) to peer into the Sala del Conclave, the hall where five popes were elected.
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Villa Gregoriana
A 19th-century park laid out by Pope Gregory XVI in 1834, Villa Gregoriana descends down a steep gorge, over which water crashes to the bottom of the canyon more than 100m below; the highlight is the 120m-high Cascata Grande (Great Waterfall).
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Chiesa di Santa Maria Nuova
The oldest church in Viterbo, the 11th-century Romanesque Chiesa di Santa Maria Nuova, was restored to its original form after WWII bomb damage. The cloisters, believed to date from an earlier period, are particularly lovely.
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Grottaferrata Abbey
This 15th-century abbey was founded in 1004. The church interior resembles an incense-perfumed jewellery box, and Mass is particularly atmospheric. The congregation of Greek monks wear distinctive flat-topped black caps.
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Museo Nazionale di Cerveteri
In Cerveteri’s medieval town centre is the splendid Museo Nazionale di Cerveteri, where treasures taken from the Necropoli di Banditaccia help to bring the dead to life.
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Museo del Colle del Duomo
Next door to the Cattedrale di San Lorenzo in Viterbo, the Museo del Colle del Duomo displays a small collection of religious artefacts, including a reliquary said to contain the chin of John the Baptist.
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Fontana Grande
In the piazza of the same name, the unimaginatively titled Fontana Grande is the oldest and largest of Viterbo's Gothic fountains.
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