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AQUILEIA |
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Forty-five kilometres west of Trieste, AQUILEIA was established as a
Roman colony in 181 BC, its location at the eastern edge of the Venetian
plain - on the bank of a navigable river a few kilometres from the sea -
being ideal for defensive and trading purposes. It became the nexus for
all Rome's dealings with points east and north, and by 10 BC, when the
Emperor Augustus received Herod the Great here, Aquileia was the capital
of the Regio Venetia et Histria and the fourth most important city in
Italy, after Rome, Milan and Capua. In 314 the famous Patriarchate of
Aquileia was founded, and under the first patriarch, Theodore, a great
basilica was built. Sacked by Attila in 452 and again by the Lombards in
568, Aquileia lost the patriarchate to Grado, which was protected from
invasion by its lagoons. It regained its primacy in the early eleventh
century under Patriarch Poppo , who rebuilt the basilica and erected the
campanile, a landmark for miles around. But regional power inevitably
passed to Venice, and in 1751 Aquileia lost its patriarchate for the
last time, to Udine. The sea has long since retreated, and the River
Natissa is a reed-clogged stream. Aquileia is now a dusty little town of
3500 people, bisected by Via Giulia Augusta, the main road to Grado, but
the remnants of its ancient heyday make it one of northeast Italy's most
important archeological sites.
Aquileia's rich history is made visible in the layers of the vast
Basilica (daily: May-Oct 8.30am-7pm; Nov-April 8.30am-12.30pm &
2.30-5.30pm; some summer evenings also open 9pm-midnight; free), just
east of the main road. The earliest part, Theodore's extraordinary
mosaic pavement , was discovered below the nave floor at the beginning
of the twentieth century and is thought to be the earliest surviving
remnant of any Christian church. The mosaic undulates the full length of
the nave in a riotous sequence of colours, patterns and images, many of
which draw on Roman iconography. As far as the red line extending across
the nave aisle there is no explicitly Christian imagery, though pagan
symbolism was frequently adopted and adapted by the early Church. Look
for the blond angel bearing the laurel wreath and palm frond - whether
it represents the Pax Romana or Christian Victory, no one can be sure.
Beyond the line the Biblical story of Jonah begins, complete with waves,
whale and fish everywhere - a motif not unconnected to the nearby
Adriatic. Other mosaics from Theodore's original basilica, depicting a
whole bestiary, have been discovered around the base of the campanile (access
from inside the basilica).
In 1348 an earthquake destroyed much of Poppo's work but the building is
still superb, the Gothic elements of the reconstruction - all points
above the capitals - harmonizing perfectly with the Romanesque below.
The fine nave ceiling, like the steeple of the campanile, dates from the
early sixteenth century. The ninth-century crypt under the chancel
(L2000/¬1.03) has very beautiful twelfth-century frescoes telling the
story of St Hermagora, the legendary first bishop of Aquileia, including
a gory beheading scene and a moving descent from the cross.
A couple of minutes' walk from the basilica, on the other side of the
main road, on Via Roma, is the Museo Archeologico (daily 9am-2pm;
L8000/¬4.13). Worked stone and everyday items litter the fields around
Aquileia, but the finer pieces have been collected here, ranging from
precise surgical needles and delicate coloured glass to great piles of
jumbled masonry. The two courtyards, in particular, resemble a junkyard
of Roman stone, with hundreds of funerary monuments; concerts are
occasionally held here in summer. It's worth persevering up to the top
floor of the museum where two extraordinary bronze heads are displayed
side by side. One is a fantastical relief in the Hellenistic style, the
other a naturalistic bust which may portray a dictator of the third
century AD; the cruel expression certainly supports the speculation. On
the ground floor rows of marble sculptures and busts mostly derive from
the Roman tombs which once lined the roads into Aquileia.
The Museo Paleocristiano (daily 9am-2pm; free), housed in the shell of a
Benedictine monastery in the northern part of the town, opposite the
campsite on Via Germina, is recommended solely to those insatiable for
more mosaic pavements. Most of the patterns are geometric, but the
mosaic on the mezzanine level is attractive, with Christ represented as
a peacock and the apostles by their various animals. There are various
pieces of early Christian carving and sculpture, but the fifteen-minute
riverside walk to the museum from the basilica is perhaps the best
reason to go, taking you past the sad remnants of the quays of Aquileia.
From the museum you can loop back along the main road, past the forum,
to the basilica.
The tourist office is in Piazza Capitolo (summer daily except Thurs
8.20am-6pm; winter Sat & Sun 10am-noon), beside the basilica. In the
newer part of town, west of the main road past the Museo Archeologico,
you'll find the least expensive of Aquileia's two hotels , the Aquila
Nera , Piazza Garibaldi 5 (tel 0431.91.045;
L60,000-90,000/¬30.99-46.48), with an excellent restaurant attached. If
they're full, try the upmarket Hotel Patriarchi , on the main road by
the bus stop (tel 0431.919.595, www.hotelpatriarch.it ;
L150,000-200,000/¬77.47-103.29), or head along Via Gemina past the Museo
Paleochristiana, where rooms are available in private houses (up to
L60,000/¬30.99). Also on Via Gemina is Camping Aquileia (tel
0431.919.583; mid-May to mid-Sept).
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