During an action-packed weekend on our recent visit to the Terni region of Umbria – courtesy of GAL Ternano – Tom Weber, The Palladian Traveler, and I were given a brief introduction to the town of Amelia.
Just half an hour’s drive from the famous Marmore Falls, Terni, and with a population of about 11,000, Amelia is one of the oldest towns in Umbria. Sitting high on a hill in the south western corner of the province it overlooks the valleys of both the River Tiber and the River Nera.
Amelia is a centre of historical interest being entirely surrounded by famously superb walls which date from the seventh century. B.C.
Arriving just outside these remarkable walls I was immediately struck by the cyclopean masonry. Cyclopean stonework is comprised of large irregularly-shaped rocks fitted tightly together without the use of mortar. These fantastic walls are broken by four gates and are approximately 700 metres long and 3.5 metres thick.
The Romans also constructed underground cisterns to collect water for the Roman baths.
We entered the pretty medieval town via Porta Romana.
As we strolled uphill along the narrow street, we paused to marvel at the preserved Roman road which was visible beneath us. Progressing upward we could see the Duomo and Torre Civica sitting on the skyline ahead.
A visit to the archaeology museum revealed a bronze statue of Germanicus, aka Nero Claudius Drusus, unearthed just outside the walls of Amelia in 1963.
More than two metres tall, this statue of the young Roman hero was restored and put on display in the archaeological museum, which is located in Palazzo Bocarini.
For me, personally, the highlight of our stroll through Amelia was our visit to the theatre. Built in 1783, it was designed by the architect, Conte Stefano Cansacchi. Its elliptical interior, which is made completely from wood, apparently influenced the design of famous La Fenice in Venice (1790). The stalls are arranged on the sloping floor, while boxes fill the walls.
Now continue to enjoy your stroll with us through the narrow streets of pretty Amelia.
Orna O’Reilly
Veneto, Italy
Orna O'Reilly: Travelling Italy 
Nicely done, Orna. Great photos sprinkled throughout.
Thanks Tom. Love your photos too. 🙂
Simply lovely, Orna! Given a day here to myself, I would be wandering all those medieval streets and doting inside the archaeological museum. Oh, and a vino on the piazza! Nicely done…
Thank you Susan.Yes, Amelia is that sort of place. You’d love it. Steeped in ancient history and just gorgeous.
What a sweet article! Next time you are in the area, let me know. It would be wonderful to meet you. 🙂
That sounds like a grand idea. Don’t know when that will be, but we do cruise through Umbria fairly regularly. So glad you liked my blog. 🙂
What a lovely day I shared with you and Tom. Thanks for taking me along. 🙂
janet
Any time you’re free! Our favourite thing to do is exploring new places, especially here in Italy where there’s such diversity. It was great fun taking you along on your virtual tour. More on our Umbrian visit to follow. Orna
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I’ve been there a couple of times, it’s a lovely village Amelia. The pictures are amazing, I enjoyed reading your blog. Thank you!
Thank you for your kind comments. So glad you liked my blog. Orna
I’ve been to Amelia just once but was totally charmed by it – hope I can get back there one day to explore further as there were so many little places to discover and simply not enough time!! Some great suggestions in your post to add to the list too, thanks!!
So glad you liked it. We had very little time there, but just enough to get a feel for the centro storico and, of course, I loved the little theatre. Really beautiful. 🙂
Still another lovely jewel in Umbria. Your lovely stroll has me putting it on my “list”…which is getting longer and longer! 😀
Yes Victoria. That’s Italy for you…..the more you see the more you realise how diverse and interesting it is.
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