Compsa
Encyclopedia
Compsa was an ancient city of the Hirpini
, near the sources of the Aufidus, on the boundary of Lucania
and not far from that of Apulia
, on a ridge 609 m above sea level.
It was betrayed to Hannibal in 216 BC after the defeat of Cannae
, but recaptured two years later. It was probably occupied by Sulla in 89 BC, and was the scene of the death of Titus Annius Milo
in 48 BC. Most sources, to this place, supposing the manuscripts to be corrupt. The usual identification of the site of Milo's death with Cassano allo Ionio
on the Gulf of Taranto
must therefore be rejected. In imperial times, as inscriptions show, it was a municipium, but it lay far from any of the main high-roads.
There ruins of the ancient city were studied again, after their appearance in the destruction of the modern town in the 1980 Irpinia earthquake
.
Hirpini
The Hirpini , were an ancient Samnite people of central Italy. While general regarded as having been Samnites, sometimes they are treated as a distinct and independent nation...
, near the sources of the Aufidus, on the boundary of Lucania
Lucania
Lucania was an ancient district of southern Italy, extending from the Tyrrhenian Sea to the Gulf of Taranto. To the north it adjoined Campania, Samnium and Apulia, and to the south it was separated by a narrow isthmus from the district of Bruttium...
and not far from that of Apulia
Apulia
Apulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
, on a ridge 609 m above sea level.
It was betrayed to Hannibal in 216 BC after the defeat of Cannae
Cannae
Cannae is an ancient village of the Apulia region of south east Italy. It is a frazione of the comune of Barletta.-Geography:It is situated near the river Aufidus , on a hill on the right Cannae (mod. Canne della Battaglia) is an ancient village of the Apulia region of south east Italy. It is a...
, but recaptured two years later. It was probably occupied by Sulla in 89 BC, and was the scene of the death of Titus Annius Milo
Titus Annius Milo
Titus Annius Milo Papianus was a Roman political agitator, the son of Gaius Papius Celsus, but adopted by his maternal grandfather, Titus Annius Luscus...
in 48 BC. Most sources, to this place, supposing the manuscripts to be corrupt. The usual identification of the site of Milo's death with Cassano allo Ionio
Cassano allo Ionio
Cassano allo Ionio is a small town and comune in province of Cosenza of Calabria, southern Italy, known in Roman times as Cassanum. It lies in fertile region in the concave recess of a steep mountain, 60 km NE from the town of Cosenza, 10 km W of the archaeological site of...
on the Gulf of Taranto
Gulf of Taranto
The Gulf of Taranto is a gulf of the Ionian Sea, in southern Italy.The Gulf of Taranto is almost square, 140 km long and wide, and is delimited by the capes Santa Maria di Leuca and Colonna...
must therefore be rejected. In imperial times, as inscriptions show, it was a municipium, but it lay far from any of the main high-roads.
There ruins of the ancient city were studied again, after their appearance in the destruction of the modern town in the 1980 Irpinia earthquake
1980 Irpinia earthquake
The 1980 Irpinia earthquake took place in the Irpinia region in Southern Italy on Sunday, November 23, 1980. Measuring 6.89 on the Richter Scale, the quake, centered on the village of Conza, killed 2,914 people, injured more than 10,000 and left 300,000 homeless. It is known in Italy as Terremoto...
.