Archaeological Area with Roman Baths (Comunanza)

The history of the Area archeologica con terme romane

The territory was inhabited by the Picenes, then passed to the Romans after the Picentine war of 267 BC. In 232 BC it was divided by centuriation and filled with small farms. Novana was the administrative, economic and social center of this countryside and lay along the Via Salaria Gallica and the Val d'Aso road, which linked the Sibillini to the Adriatic.

Novana was first a forum, then a praefectura and finally a municipium, chief town of the Ager Novanensis. Pliny the Elder mentions it in the Naturalis Historia, a work of AD 77-78. After that mention it no longer appears in other literary or epigraphic sources. From the 2nd century AD it declined, because many cultivated fields were turned into pasture.

The memory of the baths survived into the Middle Ages. In what is now the hamlet of Santa Maria stood churches linked to the Benedictine monks of Farfa, among them Santa Maria de Teràmo, today the church of Santa Maria a Terme. The expression "de Teràmo" refers to the ancient Roman baths of Novana.

What to see at the Roman baths archaeological area in Comunanza

The core of the visit is the bath buildings of Novana, which lie in the urban area of Comunanza and are now protected by a roof.

Other Roman remains are found in the municipal territory. In the historic center, sections of walls in opus caementicium, a temple cornice and a fragment of a limestone shrine have been identified. In the hamlet of Colle Terme a Roman kiln has come to light. In the hamlet of Santa Maria a necropolis was found.

How to visit the Roman baths archaeological area in Comunanza

Before the visit it is best to ask about access arrangements, because the area is protected by a roof. The site can be reached on foot from the center of Comunanza, which is a short distance from the Roman remains and from the church of Santa Maria a Terme. The town has an Apennine climate, with cold, snowy winters and hot summers.

Where the Roman baths archaeological area in Comunanza is located

The area is in Comunanza, a municipality of 54.4 km² in the Sibillini district. The main town lies along the Aso valley. The river separates the historic center, on the right bank, from the more recent urban area, on the left bank. The municipal territory borders Amandola, Montefortino, Montemonaco, Montegallo, Roccafluvione, Palmiano, Force and Montefalcone Appennino.

Around the Roman baths archaeological area in Comunanza

In the hamlet of Gerosa, a humpback Roman bridge joins the two banks of the Aso along the route of the ancient Via Salaria Gallica. Also in the municipal territory are Lago di Gerosa, southwest of the main town, and Lago di Belloca, to the east, both formed by dams on the Aso river. To compare other sites in the area, see the page on the archaeological sites of the Sibillini.