PRESENTATION OF ALBA FUCENS
Alba Fucens is the pearl of Marsica, currently a small hamlet of the municipality of Massa d’Albe, where 50 people live, which become almost 150 during the summer months. Alba Fucens rises to 966 m. above sea level and is located on the slopes of Mount Velino, the third highest peak in the Apennines with its 2487 m. above sea level.
Monte Velino oggi. (Immagine personale)
The town is small and at first glance it may not say anything, but as soon as you enter it you discover incredible wonders, which will leave in those who visit it something unique to take with them in the continuation of their existence. This small town boasts a thousand-year history of primary importance, which is immediately evident as soon as you look at its ancient ruins. Alba Fucens is today inhabited by only a few people, but in the past there was a population of about 60,000 inhabitants here for a long time.
Alba Fucens oggi. (Immagine personale)
Alba Fucens today, thanks to the will of its inhabitants, is finally restarting towards a new phase of development, returning to be a protagonist within the Marsican territory, as happened on several occasions during its long history.
I resti dell’Alba Fucens di epoca romana. (Immagine personale)
In Alba Fucens, history is certainly the protagonist of this town, where practically here with its monuments every corner of the town releases stories of distant eras, with its battles and its millenary culture. To understand a town and its people it is necessary to know this history, which will never cease to satiate the reader or visitor, for how many events have occurred over time in this small corner of the world, which we will mention later.
But Alba Fucens is not only the past, it is also the present and above all the future and we will see how this town is becoming a laboratory for a new kind of development, in full respect of its past, of the environment that surrounds it and of the centuries-old traditions that it carries with it.
Ricostruzione 3d di Alba Fucens in epoca romana
(Fotogramma video YOUTUBE – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwwRTs7vcxU)
And as always, we start from history to understand the village and understand its new path, which, although bumpy with events, must still be done. On the other hand, Alba Fucens represents in some way the history of Marsica, which has always been alternating between dark moments and joyful moments and therefore talking about Alba also means tracing the history of the entire territory, although remaining focused on the village of Alba.
The town has been the main center of Marsica for many centuries with a thousand-year history behind it that begins under the Equi, by whom it was founded approximately in the 6th century BC, and becomes important with the Romans starting from 303 BC, who defeated the Equi and made their small village a large and prosperous city for many centuries.
Presunta Domus di Macrone presente ad Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
In fact, once Alba was conquered by the Romans due to its extraordinary geographical position, it first became a large fortress and then … SEE HISTORY OF ALBA FUCENS.
– WHAT TO DO IN ALBA FUCENS
If you pass through Alba Fucens one of the experiences to do before delving into its history is to observe Monte Velino from the terrace of the Albergo Diffuso in the old medieval village. If you do this in the morning in Spring or Autumn you can admire it covered in clouds and this has its own great reason, it is an experience that in my opinion anyone who comes to Marsica should do, so come and enjoy the view!!!
Monte Velino in mezzo alle nuvole. (Immagine personale)
Once this is done, you can set off on cultural excursions first to Alba Fucens, visiting its fantastic Roman archaeological site and then the medieval-modern archaeological site, starting from the Albergo Diffuso. Once this is done, you can proceed to visit the other villages in the area such as Massa d’Albe, the town where the municipality is located, Forme, Castelnuovo, Rosciolo, etc.
Anfiteatro romano di Alba Fucens con lo sfondo della
catena del Velino-Sirente. (Immagine personale)
But above all, with the necessary precautions, you can set off to discover the mountains of the area by practicing different types of sports, starting with trekking on foot, trekking on horseback, or through bicycle rides to do cycle-tourism tours. In short, here there is a concentration of initiatives that will not bore anyone.
Giri cicloturistici nella zona di Massa d’Albe
In Alba Fucens, whatever activity we do, we are immersed in a dream landscape, where the nature and the air of this area prove to be something sublime that is worth experiencing and above all breathing, given that here there is healthy air among the best in Abruzzo and it is no coincidence that here there are several centenarians, who in some way with their presence confirm the health of this area.
For lovers of religious tourism Alba Fucens offers an immense surprise, namely the church of San Pietro located on the mountain of the same name.
La chiesa di San Pietro di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
The church in Roman times was a temple dedicated to the God Apollo, but then with the decline of the Roman era and the rise of the medieval era the temple was transformed into a Christian church by the Benedictine monks, who put down roots here by founding the church of San Pietro and its convent.
The church itself, both on a historical, structural and compositional level, offers the visitor a wealth of furnishings and structures that are unique in their kind.
L’ambone in stile cosmatesco del 1210-20. (Immagine personale)
Inside it there are structural and furnishing elements that mix together by age and culture, ranging from Roman columns to Cosmatesque art etc. In short, a true treasure chest to visit and learn about.
La chiesa di San Pietro di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
Verso il paese moderno di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
Coming down from the church of San Pietro we now move forward to get to know better the modern village of Alba Fucens, which immediately appears to us as a simple village of houses without particular structures.
Scorcio del paese di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
But as widely said this village offers many surprises and this is also true for this tiny town. In the modern town we find the church of San Nicola, second version of the ancient church of San Nicola present in the medieval site and destroyed by the earthquake of 1915.
La chiesa di San Nicola oggi. (Immagine personale)
This new structure is smaller than the previous one, but offers a facade largely rebuilt identical to the previous church. In itself the church appears minimal in line with this small village that is however reviving after a long historical lethargy.
La piazza principale del paese di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
In front of the church we find the old school of the village which has now become an information center for the archaeological site of Alba Fucens. Well it is worth entering for the wealth of material it offers to better understand the history of this ancient village.
L’antica scuola di Alba ora centro informazioni del sito archeologico. (Immagine personale)
Walking through the streets of the small village we notice a town devoid of architectural elements, but as already mentioned we perceive an atmosphere of novelty, with the inhabitants of Alba who are reviving the small large village, which was once the center of Marsica.
Scorci del paese di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
The news in Alba Fucens comes from the desire of its inhabitants to feel like protagonists again by taking care of their village and launching it more effectively in the tourism sector. For this reason, in the summer of 2023 the birth of the Proloco of the town took place, which started immediately by organizing some events and then grew with new local events, which come to enrich and characterize the ancient village of Alba Fucens.
Scorcio del paese di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
Among the first events organized we remember the first village festival, held in August for the rediscovery of ancient flavors and recipes, which for centuries have been the basis of the local population’s diet and which are now on display with this initiative.
After this, over time many other events have been organized by the Proloco, but beyond this it is nice to note that the town is very much alive and that through a recovery off its agro-pastoral history it is trying to relaunch itself in a more modern way. In this way the village shows that it is not only alive, but a protagonist of its time and we are sure that these event will grow over time, becoming, as happened for the Alba Festival, cultural points of reference not only for the municipality of belonging, but above all Marsican area.
Monte Velino. (Immagine personale)
It must also be clear that the organization of these events in Alba is not only aimed at giving a more modern image of the village, but also at linking it to its medieval past and even before that, its Italic-Roman past.
So a tourist who comes here to Alba has the opportunity to discover and experience in one fell swoop and in an ever-improving way an ancient city from the Roman era, an important medieval village and a contemporary town in full cultural rebirth.
And the cultural rebirth also and above all passes through the valorization of its historical heritage, as has been attempted for some years now for the medieval village, tranforming the part behind, which has not been incorporated into the widespread hotel, as an open-air museum, which has not been incorporated into the widespread hotel, as an open-air museum, which however however still needs to be greatly improved.
If you go up into the medieval part, passing the area restored and used as a widespread hotel, you come into contact with the remains of the medieval village, which covers a period of more than 1000 years. Here, it is as if time had stopped on the day off the earthquake of January 13, 1915, when a very powerful seismic shock razed the entire Marsica to the ground, including the small medieval village of Alba Fucens, present at the time here on Mount San Nicola.
La zona del vecchio borgo medievale restaurata adibita ad albergo diffuso. (Immagine personale)
In fact, when you arrive at the medieval village you immediately realize that you are in a unique place, not only for the magnificent landscape, but above all for the contrast between the restored part and the part devastated by the earthquake. In practice, by climbing Mount San Nicola and coming into contact with the scattered hotel, created between the end of the 90s of the twentieth century and the early 2000s, you can get an idea of what Alba waslike before theearthquake of 1915 and then arriving in the area of the ruins of how powerful the shock was that destroyed Alba.
L’antico borgo medievale di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
At the same time, the ruins offer the possibility of perceiving the reality of an ancient village, which is being recovered, albeit very, too slowly, to be used for various activities. The recovery of this part, if realized, would offer unique opportunities on various levels, both on a touristic and practical level for the inhabitants of the village.
I am referring in particular to the castle, which urgently need restoration and to be relocated to a civic use destination. For the recovery of the castle, but also of the other structures, there are varios projects still being drawn up, for the redevelopment of this important area.
L’antico borgo medievale di Alba Fucens. (Immagine personale)
At the moment, however, the entire unrestored area has been left in ruins to be turned into a museum with its historical remains, awaiting, as mentioned, other interventions. However, the view of the current ruins still offers a fairly clear vision of the medieval past, starting with the ancient castle, dating back to the 11th century, which has been destroyed and rebuilt several times.
L’antico castello di Alba Fucens oggi. (Immagine personale)
The current structure, although severely damaged by the earthquake of 1915, dates back to the 15th century, when the Orsini family decided to rebuild it in its current version. We hope that this manor can be recovered at least in part as soon as possible, so as not to lose this important historical presence, which would be a real crime and punishment to let go without attempting some recovery intervention.
– WHAT TO EAT IN ALBA FUCENS?
Alba Fucens oggi tra antico e moderno. (Immagine personale)
In Alba Fucens, like many other villages in Marsica, there is no lack of local culinary imagination in the preparation of recipes for first courses, second courses and desserts. On the other hand, Marsica is one of the areas of Italy with the richest recipes.
Alba Fucens oggi. (Immagine personale)
Alba Fucens, albeit slowly, is awakening from its long torpor into which it had slipped with the earthquake of 1915 and the subsequent Second World War. The town, as seen in the historical context of the last century, has suffered a great outflow of people, who have moved elsewhere, but now wants to move forward to write new pages of history.
Penne all’arrabiata. (Immagine da Wikipedia)
And what better way to start again than by rediscovering the pleasures of the table. The country, despite everything, has always preserved that great culinary spirit, which has always distinguished it and which today is reviving and showing in its new festival, which is held every year at the beginning of August.
I classici arrosticini di pecora
Here you can taste many of the local specialties, such as the first courses, among which the penne all’arrabbiata or the sandwich with porchetta, produced with local pigs, stand out. For second courses we find the classic arrosticini of sheep with baked potatoes, all accompanied by local beers.
Visiting Alba Fucens or staying here, even just a few days, means living a one-of-a-kind experience, which will enrich your heart and soul and make you feel full of energy to face the many adversities of life.
Resti del borgo medievale. (Immagine personale)
Coming to Alba means breathing in history in all its facets, covering practically all historical eras, including the current one, in a single small space.
Il monte San Pietro con l’omonima chiesa e sullo sfondo la Piana del Fucino. (Immagine personale)
To this fantastic painting of life, we must add its wonderful setting, represented by a unique and luxuriant nature, which here manifests itself with its splendid rocky mountains, which make this village a dream called Alba Fucens.
So what are you waiting for, come to Alba Fucens!!!