thumb
Valentano is a town and
comuneIn Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division of both provinces and regions, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.- Importance and function :...
of the
province of ViterboThe Province of Viterbo is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Viterbo.It has an area of 3,612 km², and a total population of 299,830 . There are 60 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Viterbo...
, in the Lazio region of central
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
. It is 33 km from the provincial capital,
ViterboViterbo is an ancient city and comune in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo. It is approximately 100 kilometers north of Rome on the Via Cassia, and it is surrounded by the Monti Cimini and Monti Volsini. The historic center of the city is surrounded by...
.
left
The placename is of uncertain origin. Some identify the town with an
EtruscanEtruscan civilization is the modern English name given to the culture and way of life of a people of ancient Italy and Corsica, residing between the Apennines and the River Tiber, whom the ancient Romans called Etrusci or Tusci...
Verentum, others trace the name to
ontano, Italian for
alderAlder is the common name of a genus of flowering plants belonging to the birch family . The genus comprises about 30 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, few reaching large size, distributed throughout the North Temperate Zone and in the Americas also along the Andes southwards to...
, since alders cover the slopes of a nearby valley:
Valle Ontano becoming
Valentano.
The town is named for the first time in a manuscript of 813 in the Farfa Register; starting in 844 a "Balentanu" appears in other documents of the abbey of San Salvatore on Mt.
thumb
Valentano is a town and
comuneIn Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division of both provinces and regions, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.- Importance and function :...
of the
province of ViterboThe Province of Viterbo is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Viterbo.It has an area of 3,612 km², and a total population of 299,830 . There are 60 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Viterbo...
, in the Lazio region of central
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
. It is 33 km from the provincial capital,
ViterboViterbo is an ancient city and comune in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo. It is approximately 100 kilometers north of Rome on the Via Cassia, and it is surrounded by the Monti Cimini and Monti Volsini. The historic center of the city is surrounded by...
.
left
The placename is of uncertain origin. Some identify the town with an
EtruscanEtruscan civilization is the modern English name given to the culture and way of life of a people of ancient Italy and Corsica, residing between the Apennines and the River Tiber, whom the ancient Romans called Etrusci or Tusci...
Verentum, others trace the name to
ontano, Italian for
alderAlder is the common name of a genus of flowering plants belonging to the birch family . The genus comprises about 30 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, few reaching large size, distributed throughout the North Temperate Zone and in the Americas also along the Andes southwards to...
, since alders cover the slopes of a nearby valley:
Valle Ontano becoming
Valentano.
Antiquity and High Middle Ages
The town is named for the first time in a manuscript of 813 in the Farfa Register; starting in 844 a "Balentanu" appears in other documents of the abbey of San Salvatore on Mt. Amiata. The land was definitely inhabited in prehistoric times, and important finds in the
Lake MezzanoLake Mezzano is a small crater lake of central Italy, of volcanic origin, which was formed 400,000 years ago.The lake has a circular shape typical of crater lakes...
and near Mt. Becco, Mt. Saliette, the Poggi del Mulino and Mt. Starnina seem to confirm the theories of historians, who identify the lake with the Lake of Statonia (
Lacus Statoniensis) described by
SenecaLucius Annaeus Seneca was a Roman Stoic philosopher, statesman, dramatist, and in one work humorist, of the Silver Age of Latin literature. He was tutor and later advisor to emperor Nero...
in his
Naturales QuaestionesNaturales quaestiones is an encyclopedia of the natural world written by Seneca around 65 AD.-Content:The work was written by Seneca the Younger around 65 AD, and is addressed to Lucilius Junior. It is one of the few Roman works which deals with scientific matters...
and by
Pliny the ElderGaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was an author, naturalist, and natural philosopher as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
(
ii.209,
xiv.67 and
xxxvi.168).
The Farnese
In the Renaissance period, the town fell under the dominion of the Farnese family: it is to them that Valentano owes its fortress (
Rocca) and many of its churches.
In 1649, when the town of
CastroCastro was an ancient city on the west side of Lake Bolsena in the present-day comune of Ischia di Castro, northern Lazio, Italy.-History:...
, capital of the Duchy of Castro, was destroyed, Valentano became the natural center of the Castrense region and the custodian of its archives.
Modern times
In June 1944, an artillery shell exploded in the "Portonaccio" gate, killing seven civilians who had taken shelter in it. The gate itself is a witness to the tragedy, since one of its stones is missing, but in 2004 a plaque was placed in the Via Trento e Trieste to commemorate all local victims of
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Main sights
- Palazzo Comunale (Town Hall)
- Porta Magenta, designed by Vignola
Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola, often simply called Vignola was one of the great Italian architects of 16th century Mannerism. His two great masterpieces are the Villa Farnese at Caprarola and the Jesuits' Church of the Gesù in Rome...
- Vitozzi Palace
- Cruciani Palace, birthplace of Paolo Ruffini
Paolo Ruffini was an Italian mathematician and philosopher.By 1788 he had earned university degrees in philosophy, medicine/surgery, and mathematics...
- San Martino lookout
- Museum of the Prehistory of Tuscia and of the Rocca Farnese
- Churches:
- Collegiate church of San Giovanni Evangelista
- Santa Maria
- Santa Croce
- Madonna del Monte
- Sanctuary of the Madonna della Salute
- Chiesa dell'Annunziata at Villa Fontane
- Sancta Maria ad Templum
- Chiesa dell'Eschio
- Church of the Madonna della Pietà (also Madonna dell' Ospedale)
Natives of Valentano
- Gaetano Amoroso
- Ranuccio Farnese
Ranuccio Farnese was an Italian prelate, who was Cardinal of Santa Lucia in Messina, Sicily from 1545 to his death in 1565....
, Roman Catholic cardinal
- Alessandro Guarnelli
- Lino Lottatori
- Alessandro Mazzinelli
- Antonio Ongaro, 16th century poet
- Paolo Ruffini
Paolo Ruffini was an Italian mathematician and philosopher.By 1788 he had earned university degrees in philosophy, medicine/surgery, and mathematics...
, 18th century mathematician
- Giordano Starnini
Celebrations and festivals
- Good Friday: Procession of the Body of Christ ("Cristo Morto")
- 3d Sunday in May: Cedar Fair, instituted by the Farnese in 1461
- August 14‑15 Agosto: Feast of the Assumption, with a Plowing Competition.
- throughout the summer: various events, including the Palio of the Duchy of Castro, a historical pageant.
External links