San Benedetto dei Marsi

San Benedetto dei Marsi
San Benedetto dei Marsi
Comune
	Comune di San Benedetto dei Marsi
	Portal of the church of Santa Sabina.
	Location of San Benedetto dei Marsi
	San Benedetto dei Marsi Location of San Benedetto dei Marsi in Italy San Benedetto dei Marsi San Benedetto dei Marsi (Abruzzo)
	Coordinates: 42°00′14.51″N 13°37′9.69″E / 42.0040306°N 13.6193583°E
Country	Italy
Region	Abruzzo
Province	L'Aquila (AQ)
Government
• Mayor	Quirino D'Orazio
Area
• Total	25.25 km2 (9.75 sq mi)
Elevation	678 m (2,224 ft)
Population (30 November 2017)
• Total	3,909
• Density	150/km2 (400/sq mi)
Demonym	Sambenedettesi
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	67058
Dialing code	0863
Saint day	June 1
Website	Official website

San Benedetto dei Marsi (Latin: Marruvium, Marrubium; Ancient Greek: Μαρούϊον, romanized: Maroúïon) is a comune and town in the province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region of central Italy. It is on the eastern shore of the dried Lake Fucino, 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the remains of another ancient site, Alba Fucens.

Near the town is the stream Giovenco, identified as the ancient stream known as Pitonius.

History

The ancient Marruvium was the chief city of the Italic tribe of the Marsi; Marruvii or Marrubii is another form of the name of the Marsi, and was used by Virgil as an ethnic appellation.^[3]

In accordance with this, Silius Italicus also describes Marruvium as deriving its name from a certain Marrus, who is evidently only an eponymous hero of the Marsi.^[4] There is no account of Marruvium, however, previous to the Roman conquest of the Marsic territory; but under the Roman Empire it was a flourishing municipal town; it is noticed as such both by Strabo and Pliny, and in inscriptions we find it called "splendidissima civitas Marsorum Marruvium".^[5]

It was also called Civitas Marsorum, and, in the Middle Ages, Civitas Marsicana.^[6] It is noticed in the Tabula Peutingeriana, which places it 13 Roman miles from Alba; but it was not situated on the Via Valeria, and must have communicated with that high-road by a branch from Cerfennia.^[7]

The town was an episcopal see in the Middle Ages, being destroyed in 1340 during the Angevine wars for the conquest of the Kingdom of Naples. In 1580 the see was moved to the neighboring town of Pescina.

Main sights

Considerable ruins of the ancient city still remain, including portions of its walls and the remains of an amphitheatre, and numerous inscriptions, as well as statues, have been discovered on the site. These ruins are situated close to the margin of the lake, about 3 kilometres (2 mi) below Pescina.^[8]

People

Andrea Zitolo, scientist. A native of the city from the maternal side.

Climate

Climate data for San Benedetto dei Marsi, elevation 687 m (2,254 ft), (1951–2000)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	6.9 (44.4)	9.1 (48.4)	12.6 (54.7)	16.2 (61.2)	21.6 (70.9)	25.5 (77.9)	28.7 (83.7)	29.1 (84.4)	24.6 (76.3)	18.9 (66.0)	12.0 (53.6)	7.7 (45.9)	17.7 (64.0)
Daily mean °C (°F)	2.3 (36.1)	4.0 (39.2)	6.9 (44.4)	9.9 (49.8)	14.5 (58.1)	17.8 (64.0)	20.4 (68.7)	20.7 (69.3)	17.0 (62.6)	12.2 (54.0)	6.9 (44.4)	3.3 (37.9)	11.3 (52.4)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−2.3 (27.9)	−1.2 (29.8)	1.0 (33.8)	3.6 (38.5)	7.4 (45.3)	10.2 (50.4)	12.1 (53.8)	12.2 (54.0)	9.5 (49.1)	5.6 (42.1)	1.7 (35.1)	−1.0 (30.2)	4.9 (40.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	48.7 (1.92)	50.7 (2.00)	43.8 (1.72)	51.1 (2.01)	39.7 (1.56)	31.7 (1.25)	24.6 (0.97)	30.9 (1.22)	49.8 (1.96)	72.7 (2.86)	91.5 (3.60)	73.5 (2.89)	608.7 (23.96)
Average precipitation days	7.3	7.2	7.8	8.9	7.3	5.2	3.8	4.0	5.9	7.1	9.7	8.9	83.1
Source: Regione Abruzzo^[9]

References

^ "Superficie di Comuni Province e Regioni italiane al 9 ottobre 2011". Italian National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
^ "Popolazione Residente al 1° Gennaio 2018". Italian National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
^ "Marruvia de gente", Aen. vii. 750
^ Sil. Ital. viii. 505.
^ Strab. v. p. 241; Plin. iii. 12. s. 17; Mommsen, Inscr. R. N. 5491, 5499; Orell. Inscr. 3149.
^ Lib. Colon. pp. 229, 256.
^ Tab. Peut.
^ Holsten. ad Cluver. p. 151; Romanelli, vol. iii. p. 180-186; Kramer, Fuciner See, p. 55; Hoare's Class. Tour, vol. i. pp. 357–361. The inscriptions are collected by Mommsen, I. R. N. pp. 290–294.
^ "VALORI MEDI CLIMATICI DAL 1951 AL 2000 NELLA REGIONE ABRUZZO" (PDF). Regione Abruzzo. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 June 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.

Sources

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)