Liternum
Encyclopedia
Liternum was an ancient town of Campania
, Italy
, on the low sandy coast between Cumae
and the mouth of the Volturnus. It was probably once dependent on Cumae. In 194 BC
it became a Roman colony.
The town is mainly famous as the residence of the elder Scipio Africanus
, who withdrew from Rome and died there. His tomb and villa are described by Seneca the Younger
. In Ovid
's Metamorphoses Liternum is known for having mastic trees: lentisciferum... Liternum . Augustus Caesar is said to have conducted a colony of veterans to Liternum. However, the place never had any great importance, and the lagoons behind it made it unhealthy. The construction of the Via Domitiana through it must have made it a posting station. It ceased to exist in the 8th century.
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, on the low sandy coast between Cumae
Cumae
Cumae is an ancient Greek settlement lying to the northwest of Naples in the Italian region of Campania. Cumae was the first Greek colony on the mainland of Italy , and the seat of the Cumaean Sibyl...
and the mouth of the Volturnus. It was probably once dependent on Cumae. In 194 BC
194 BC
Year 194 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Africanus and Longus...
it became a Roman colony.
The town is mainly famous as the residence of the elder Scipio Africanus
Scipio Africanus
Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus , also known as Scipio Africanus and Scipio the Elder, was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...
, who withdrew from Rome and died there. His tomb and villa are described by Seneca the Younger
Seneca the Younger
Lucius 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 Ovid
Ovid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...
's Metamorphoses Liternum is known for having mastic trees: lentisciferum... Liternum . Augustus Caesar is said to have conducted a colony of veterans to Liternum. However, the place never had any great importance, and the lagoons behind it made it unhealthy. The construction of the Via Domitiana through it must have made it a posting station. It ceased to exist in the 8th century.
External links
- The Hunterian Museum's page on Liternum, with maps and photos.