, late-Archic temple of Juno Sospita, 500 BC, Villa Poniatowski,
Rome Even though erudite scholars have been trying to ascertain the location of the ancient towns of Latium for at least the last four centuries (see Cluvier), and despite the recent progress made by archaeology in the field of the human settlement of ancient Latium, only a few towns of archaic Latium cited by ancient sources have been identified with certainty, whereas a remarkable number of settlements that have been unearthed remain unidentified. This is due to the lack of epigraphic confirmation, due to the rare use of writing in archaic times. The problem is made even more difficult because some of the ancient locations were possibly resettled during the
Early Middle Ages, as was probably the case for Labicum and Collatia. A good instance of such a custom is provided by Falerii outside Latium Vetus. Towns which have been identified archaeologically include Satricum, Politorium, Ficana, Tellenae, Crustumerium, Corniculum, Antemnae, Collatia, Fidenae, Pedum, Apiolae, Gabii and perhaps Querquetulum.
Alba Longa, Pometia and Corioli remain unidentified. Traces of the presence of the Ligures and Sicels remain in the
toponymy and
onomastics. The most conspicuous case and one which has given rise to long-standing debate is Alba Longa. The location of that famous city, according to tradition founded by
Ascanius and the metropolis of the Latins for 418 years, is still a mystery. Some scholars have argued that it has not yet been identified because the Ancients themselves did not know exactly where it was located and the reason for their ignorance was that Alba had never been a real city. It would rather have been a loose collection of small and sparsely populated protohistoric villages organised in the Bronze Age custom around the sanctuary of Mount Albanus and abandoned before it reached the urban stage.
Amitinum This centre was located to the east of Rome on the Corniculan Mountains, not far from Curniculum. Its identification is due to an inscription that mentions a
pagus amentinus.
Antemnae The town of Antemnae was located three miles to the north of Rome on the left bank of the river Anio and close to its confluence with the Tiber. Its name means "between the rivers" (Antemnae is the Sabine for Latin
interamnes). Some of its ruins were discovered in 1880 during excavations to build the fortress "Forte Antenne". Later excavations yielded additional material. The location is now within the urban area of Rome. Antemnae was colonised by Rome at the time of Romolus during the first effort to control the left bank of the Tiber up to the Anio, thus ensuring a communication route with Etruria along the Via Salaria. The Antemnates and the Caeninenses were granted full Roman citizenship. Nevertheless, the town revolted several times, the last time in 507 BC.
Apiolae Destroyed by
Tarquinius Priscus, the remains have been identified and excavated. The town was located on Monte Savello between
Albano and
Pavona. It housed a temple of Apollo and the famous spring of
Juturna, with nearby Lake Turni being the object of a local cult. Today the two water sources are known as the spring of Secciano and the Laghetto di Pavona.
Aefulae The site of the settlement of the Alban people Aesulani has been identified with the hilltop castrum of Aefulae near ancient Tibur and close to the site of one of the temples of
Bona Dea. It was deserted by the original dwellers and later resettled by the Romans, who turned it into a military fort.
Bolae The site of the Alban people Bolani is frequently mentioned by the historians Dionysius of Halicarnassus and Livy. It was occupied by the Aequians probably already in the late 6th century or in the wars led by
Coriolanus. Its site is not known with certainty, but it must have stood not far from Praeneste and Labicum.
Corioli The site of this settlement must have stood on the south-west side of the Alban Hills near Genzano and Lanuvium.
Pedum The most important of the Latin towns developed from the ancient
populi albenses,
Pedum stood between Tibur and Praeneste near modern
Gallicano nel Lazio. It was taken by the Romans with Coriolanus. After the final demise of the Latin League, the town declined.
Tolerium This settlement of the Alban people was probably not far from Pedum, according to a passage in
Dionysius of Halicarnassus (7.26).
Vitellia The site of the populus of the Vitellienses was located at the border between the Latins and the Aequians.
Caenina The site of
Caenina has not yet been identified with certainty. It may have been located near present-day "La Rustica" close to the
Anio river, on a trade route connecting Latium with Etruria and Campania. Festus states it was close to the old Roman settlement. It was originally a settlement of the Sicels, as was Antemnae, who were later expelled by the Aborigenes. Dionysius records a tradition according to which Romulus was at Caenina for a sacrifice during the festival of the
Lupercalia, which was the occasion of the abduction of
Remus by Numitor's shepherds. The town underwent
synoecism and some of its cults and priests (
sacerdotes) were transferred to Rome by Romulus, who celebrated his first triumph after conquering the Caeninenses and killing their king,
Acron. However, according to Dionysius, Romulus allowed the Caeninenses to continue to live in their hometown, although they had to accept a colony of three hundred Romans and the allotment to them of one third of their land. The town is still mentioned at the beginning of the Republic: the Vindicius who revealed the plot of the Aquilii to
Publius Valerius Publicola was a slave from Caenina captured in war. The town name may be related to Latin
caenum (mud, lime), itself a word with no Indoeuropean etymology. Another possibility is that it was of Celtic (Ligurian) origin.
Cameria or Camerium Since Romulus made this town into a Roman colony, it fought many wars against Rome. In 502 BC it was destroyed, and its ruins have not yet been found; it was located to the north-east of Rome.
Collatia Strabo places
Collatia some 30
stades from Rome. Though by his time it had been reduced to farmland. The location of the site has not yet been identified with certainty, but it was located near modern
Lunghezza, to the east of Rome. Likely it stood on the hill now occupied by the
Castello di Lunghezza; which lies at the terminus of the ancient
Via Collatina. The town was conquered and colonized by the Romans. Livy preserves the formula of their surrender, often cited as example of the
deditio in fidem. Collatia was founded by the Latin king
Silvius of Alba Longa and it was the hometown of
Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus, one of the first two consuls of the Roman Republic.
Curniculum or Corniculum The town has been located by modern scholars in the present position of
Montecelio (formerly Monticelli) in the comune of
Guidonia, not far from
Tibur. The two adjacent hills shaped like a pair of horns were the source of its name, and the nearby mountain range is still known as "Monti Cornicolani". Near Montecelio, relics dating from the
Iron Age and fragments of pottery from the 7th-6th centuries BC have been discovered. The town was destroyed by Tarquinius Priscus and was believed to be the hometown of
Servius Tullius's mother, Ocresia.
Crustumerium or Crustumeria The site of
Crustumerium has been known since the 19th century. It is located in the hills of the Riserva Naturale park of Marcigliana Vecchia, to the north of Rome near Settebagni, on the
Via Salaria. The town was also known as
Castrimoenium and
Crustumeria and has given its name to the surrounding countryside and hills known as "Ager Crustuminus" and "Montes Crustumini". According to Servius it was originally a settlement of the
Sicels, founded by the Sicel Clitemnestrus. The etymology of the name is unclear and may reflect an ancient Pre-Indo European toponymic
crustulum, meaning pond. Crustumerium has been and is still being excavated by archaeologists and its study has been important for understanding urban development in Old Latium. It was located on one of the routes that linked
Veii and
Gabii, close to a ford on the Tiber, which fact, along with the richness of its countryside, was the cause of its importance and wealth. The town stretched along a road trench and occupied an area of 60 hectares. It had walls that were a complex made by four or five parallel stretches connected by normal ones and covered with stone slabs. Tombs contained a rich production of fine pottery painted in white and red, weapons, and other instruments from the early Iron Age onward. The town is mentioned in the Aeneid, and in the history of Rome it was involved in the abduction of the Sabine women and the subsequent war. Further, Romulus is said to have installed a colony of Romans there. Later it is frequently mentioned in the wars between Rome and its neighbors. Literary sources put the destruction of Crustumerium at the end of the sixth century, but archaeologists have shown it was still occupied in the fifth century and declined only in the fourth century.
Ficana Ficana was located on the left bank of the Tiber, downstream from Rome, near present-day
Acilia on the highland over Monte Cugno. In ancient times, this provided an advantage as it was steeper and a dominant position on the river. Its identification is confirmed by the find of an inscription. The sources state that it was destroyed twice by Ancus Marcius in his drive to control the lower course of the Tiber and the salines, together with Politorium and Tellenae. Its importance was owed to the fact it was a port that afforded a commercial route to the hinterland toward the Alban Hills and Aricia. Archaeologists have shown that it was still a prosperous centre during the 4th century and reached its maximum expansion after the Roman conquest. It declined only in the 4th and 3rd centuries after the development of
Ostia. Excavations have unearthed the town wall, housing areas and a necropolis. Long-necked
amphoras decorated with reliefs or scratches of a style typical of 7th-century Old Latium testify to the early quality of the local material culture. The Ficana site is now an archaeological park.
Medullium Also known in the sources as
Medullia, its exact location is unknown. It was the hometown of
Hostus Hostilius's family and was conquered by Tullus Hostilius, although not destroyed. Its name suggests a relationship to the Ligurian tribe of the Medulli (Medylloi in Strabon IV 1, 11) and would appear to be cognate with the Celtic deity Meduna. Strabo mentions two other towns named Medullia, one in the western Alps in Gallia and one in the aastern Alps in Iapudia.
Politorium Politorium has been identified in the archaic settlement found near
Castel di Decima, south-east of Rome, but this identification lacks epigraphic confirmation. It is mentioned by Cato, who records its founding, and by Livy and Dionysius of Halicarnassos, who describe its capture and successive demolition by Ancus Marcius. Its inhabitants would have been deported to the Aventine. These facts are part of the first expansive drive by Rome toward the sea, which also brought about the fall of Ficana and Tellenae. The excavations have uncovered remains of the fortifications and a princely necropolis.
Satricum Satricum was recorded by Pliny as the first in his list of
clara oppida. It was an important and ancient settlement of the Latin and other tribes and arose near the prehistoric sanctuary of
Mater Matuta. It has been identified by archaeologists at Le Ferriere, in the present
Province of Latina, and it was systematically excavated by the Royal Dutch Institute in Rome in collaboration with Italian authorities. During excavations in 1977 the inscription known as
Lapis Satricanus was unearthed.
Scaptia The town is mentioned by Livy as the eponymous settlement of the Roman tribe of the same name. Its location has not been identified, with some scholars suggesting that it was located near Tibur or near Passerano. ==Modern studies on the settlement of prehistoric Latium==