Italian artworks

Alatri virtually clings to the slopes of the Ernici mountains. It is an ancient town, founded by the Hernici people, who provided it with a mighty city wall between the 4th and 2nd centuries BC. This did not, however, prevent it from coming under the rule of Rome. The polygonal surrounding walls, about 2 km in extension, are composed of large stone blocks that have survived over time, tampered with in the Middle Ages but still retaining their original layout, with five gates. Porta San Francesco leads from the north to the historical centre, and the main street leads to the acropolis, itself surrounded by cyclopean walls, built in the 2nd century BC upon an older fortification. They are truly immense blocks that fit together perfectly and have remained standing for over two thousand years. It is accessed from Porta Maggiore, or Porta Civita, which is supported by a colossal monolithic lintel of more than five metres. From here you ascend to the green tree-lined square on which stands the cathedral, erected before the year 1000 with later 16th-century alterations and an 18th-century façade. During the Middle Ages, the acropolis was often used by the inhabitants of the town as a refuge, and it was later turned into a fortress. It was not until the 19th century that its restoration began, when the road around its perimeter was also opened. You can enjoy a beautiful panorama from the Civita Gardens over the historic centre below, the plains of Ciociaria and the Ernici mountains. The part of the centre within the city walls is medieval: thus, through narrow streets, alleys and stairways, you can reach Piazza Regina Margherita, on which three churches stand: the 14th-century church of San Francesco; the 13th-century church of Santa Maria Maggiore, of early Christian origin, which houses works of artistic value; and the church of Santa Maria degli Scolopi, in late Baroque style. Also of interest is Palazzo Gottifredo, a 13th-century tower house and site of the Civic Museum.

One of the most important churches in medieval Europe, this was once the stage for historic events and ceremonies, which have made Anagni famous. The town has also been a papal seat. Among many notable events in Anagni, the saints canonised here include St Bernard of Clairvaux (1174) and St Clare of Assisi (1255), in 1243 Pope Innocent IV was elected here and Frederick Barbarossa was excommunicated here in 1160. Next to the plain facade stands the majestic Romanesque bell tower, lightened by mullioned and triple lancet windows. Inside the church one is immediately struck by the refined Cosmatesque floor, the array of architectural and decorative elements representing the transition from Romanesque to Gothic, and the wooden triptych of the Saviour on the right nave. But the real treasure is the crypt, dedicated to St Magnus and embellished with a cycle of frescoes depicting the Creation, stories of the Ark of the Covenant, the Apocalypse and the life of St Magnus, patron saint of Anagni. The frescoes are considered masterpieces of the European thirteenth century, in terms of scope and brilliance. Through a narrow passageway, the crypt leads to the oratory of St Thomas Beckett, also frescoed. You can also visit the adjoining Cathedral Museum, itself a treasure trove of wonders, the Treasury, the equisite library, the chapter house, the sacristies, the lapidarium and the archaeological collection, as well as the collections of fine textiles and fabrics.

You'll find a more modern side of Trivento on the flat, thin strip running along the sides of the main road, ending at the top above the river Trigno with the hill, on which the historic centre is built in a fan shape around the Cathedral. Tradition has it that the church was founded in the early days of Christianity on the site of an ancient temple dedicated to Diana. More certainly 17th-century is the bell tower, and both a fourth- or fifth-century baptistery and the crypt dedicated to St. Castus are notable inside. The latter is divided by columns and pillars into seven small naves, beneath which are preserved wooden statues, tombstones, frescoes and a 12th century lunette with sculptural reliefs depicting the Trinity. Also worth seeing in this almost small town are the 18th-century chapel and the bishops' hall with portraits of prelates in the Bishop's Palaceand the former 16th-century Church of the Holy Trinity set up as Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art: Here, liturgical vestments and sacred furnishings between the 16th and 19th centuries from the area are displayed, including a 17th-century reliquary with the Holy Thorn. In historical terms, before becoming the Roman municipality of Terventum the place had been a stronghold repeatedly ravaged during the Samnite wars, only to rise to the rank of diocese in early Christian Italy in the fourth century. In terms of nature, however, Trivento is home to the Park of the Cenozoic Morge of Molisewhich unites a number of municipalities in Molise for the purpose of collective promotion.

The Forum is the large central square of the city, which measured approximately 150x36 metres and was divided in two by the decumanus maximus that crossed it transversally. In the square, citizens gathered to meet, discuss and trade or to learn about decisions made by the city's administrators. The north-western part was the sacred part. It was dominated by the Capitolium, the city's main temple, possibly dedicated to the Capitoline Triad or to other deities that cannot be identified at the moment. The Capitolium of Julia Augusta Bagiennorum measured about 10x23 metres and was built on a podium about 4 metres high, accessed by climbing a large frontal staircase. Once at the top, one crossed a portico, the pronaos, and then entered the cella, a large hall in which the large statues of the deities and also the treasures offered to them for good luck were kept. A double-sloping roof covered the temple and was decorated both in the tympanum and along the sides with antefixes with a "palmette" motif. Parts of the marble decorations, some terracotta antefixes, the probable end of the shaft of one of the statues of the gods and the curl of the throne are exhibited in the Museum. In front of the temple, traces of an ara, an altar used for votive sacrifices, were also found. The temple was surrounded on three sides by a single-nave portico overlooked by various rooms; one of these, rectangular in shape and paved, has been interpreted as a curia, a building reserved for the meetings of the senate. AR Experience: click here to activate the immersive experience and step back in time.

An ethnographic museum-workshop housed in an old courtyard house, in which Aunt Savina, the last owner of the house, used to handcraft candles. In the first room of the museum, there is a candle workshop, ancient tools and moulds for votive offerings. The other rooms tell the story of local craft traditions through the setting up of workshops for loom weaving, spinning, embroidery, fabric dyeing and basket weaving. The museum also organises demonstrations and workshops. It is part of the MIF - Museum of Women's Entrepreneurship.

A small town on a low plateau on a bend in the Flumendosa River, Ballao is perhaps the heir to a Roman mansio built to defend the mines in the area. The urban centre does not have any valuable buildings, but it does have numerous dwellings built using a very ancient technique: in the lower part they are made of schist stone, while the rest are made of ladiri, which are sun-baked clay and straw bricks. Along the old road to Silius, one can see the remains of the 13th century Orguglioso or Sassai castle, built by the judges of Cagliari. In the surrounding area, one can visit the disused mining site of Corti Rosas - included in the Geo-mineral Park of Sardinia, where one can look for beautiful antimonite crystals in the heaps of residue - and Funtana Coberta, a sacred Nuragic well of the oldest type.

The mine of Su Suergiu, about 2 kilometres north-west of Villasalto, was active between 1880 and 1987 and was the most important mining and processing site for antimony in Italy. Today it is part of the Geomining Park of Sardinia. The Mineralogical Archaeology Museum, housed in the management building, reconstructs the complete stages of the production process and the lives of the miners through the exhibition, divided into several areas, of the working tools used in the mine, as well as some specimens of minerals and rocks.

On the edge of the Flumendosa alluvial plain, in a fertile area sheltered from the winds and dotted with fishponds, Muravera was populated since antiquity, but over the centuries incursions from the sea and floods caused by the river made it inhospitable. Today, having closed some mines, it lives off agriculture, in particular the cultivation of citrus fruits, celebrated in early spring in a lively festival. In the 1970s, the building boom along the coast made the area touristy, with beautiful beaches and crystal clear sea. In the village are the late-Gothic 16th century parish church of St Nicholas and a small centre with typical low courtyard houses. The Mif-Museo dell'Imprenditoria femminile (Museum of Female Entrepreneurship), a museum system in Muravera, has two venues dedicated to two symbolic women of the country. At 99 Via Marconi, in front of the Church of S. Nicola, the former Carabinieri barracks houses the Women's Museum Francesca Sanna Sulis - centred on the figure of this 18th-century entrepreneur active in the field of silk production, spinning and weaving - and is also the venue for temporary art exhibitions. Not far away, on Via Speranza, an 18th-century courtyard house is now home to the Candelai Museum, which is inspired by Aunt Savina's activity of making votive candles. Particularly eagerly awaited by locals and an attraction for tourists is the Maskaras Summer Carnival, in early August: an opportunity to admire traditional Sardinian costumes and masks from all over the island. At the end of August, on the other hand, the feast of St Augustine takes place, one of the most important in the area: the processions and dances are attended by groups in traditional costume, the traccas, or carts pulled by oxen yokes that have largely disappeared elsewhere, appear, and the masters of the launeddas, the ancient three-reed wind instrument, perform.

Class of 1716, Francesca Sanna Sulis was born to wealthy landowners in the backward Sardinia of the Savoy. An ante litteram stylist and entrepreneur, she began cultivating mulberry trees for silkworm cultivation, from which she obtained silk for her clothes, which, unlike the heavy and bulky ones of the time, were light and facilitated women's movements. From here, he established a textile factory with over 700 employees, to whom he offered tailoring education and training. Donna Francesca Sanna Sulis was also centuries ahead of her time on corporate welfare: when her employees got married and had to move with their husbands to another location, she gave them a loom so they could work at home. He was so successful that his silk and confections were in demand in Lombardy, Piedmont and even reached Russia. The museum, which is part of the MIF - Museo dell'Imprenditoria Femminile (Museum of Women's Entrepreneurship), together with the Candlemakers' Museum, Museo dei Candelai, recounts the entrepreneurial, artistic and cultural life of Donna Francesca Sanna Sulis. It also exhibits locally produced handicrafts and is a venue for temporary art exhibitions.

Armungia is a charming little town, clustered around the nurhag tower in the centre. It is located next to the ex-town hall, which is now home to the small Sa Domu de is Aìnas Historic and Ethnographic Museum. Other museum attractions include the Blacksmith's Forge and the Emilio and Joyce Lussu Historical Museum, located in the "Secretary's House", a beautiful residence built at the turn of the twentieth century and located in the town's main square. The writer's birthplace, in the Cannedu quarter, is also part of the museum itinerary. It is an interesting example of the local construction style, as it is made from blocks of shale, a soft rock that is quite easy to work with.

Built between the second half of the 12th century and the end of the 13th, the Church of St Pantaleon, named after the patron saint of Dolianova, has an unusual structure. It is a harmonious mix of the Pisan style dating from the first construction phase, with a mix of Romanesque and Gothic in the second phase, and Islamic influences in the final phase.In an external wall there is a Roman sarcophagus, while inside, amid the rustic columns of different styles, you can see a rare baptismal font made from sandstone in the early Christian period, as well as an early 16th-century altarpiece (the Martyrdom of St Pantaleon) by a Spanish artist.