The Grotto of Massacci
The
Grotto of Massacci
in Osteria Nuova
is
one of the most important monuments of the Roman era present in the
Sabine, going back to the II century A.C. The grotto is a large funerary
monument with enormous blocks of limestone one on top of another without
mortar. In the funerary room, covered with travertine marble, one goes
across a long hall of megalithic blocks that form the vaulted ceiling.
The chamber is an environment more or less square, covered by crossed
vaults. On the walls open three niches that once held sarcophagi.
Passing the grotto, along the Via Salaria towards Rieti, are three tower
tombs, dated from the first Imperial age. Opposite the plateau of Vicus
Novus, by the side of the Salaria, one can see other two funeral
monuments.
The abbey of Farfa
The abbey of Farfa is the most important religius monument of the whole Sabine territory and it is one of the most illustrious monuments of Europe’s Middle Ages; it was under Charlemagne’s patronage and possessed a vast portion of central Italy in the period of its maximum splendor.
The beginnings of the abbey go back to the VI century, founded by San Lorenzo Siro. Destroyed by the Longobards, it was then reconstructed around the VII century by Monk Tommaso da Moriana, the second founder of Farfa.
The decadence of the Carolingian Empire and the invasions of the Saracens at the end of the IX century, led to the fall of Farfa. The abbey underwent seven years of assaults, then was overtaken and set on fire.
The abbey church, constructed on the remains of the ancient church, goes back to the XV century, the period in which the abbey was under the influence of the powerful Orsini family.
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