Joanne's long walks: Via Francigena nel Sud Day 12: Sessa Aurunca

Road (~~to)~~ from Rome 2021 Day 12: Sessa Aurunca - Teano

This morning a small group of only nine walkers set off from the cathedral of Sessa Aurunca.

We had a little trouble finding the right way out of the maze of narrow lanes of the old town, but once we were outside the old city walls we found ourselves on a pleasant path through the greenery which took us past two abandoned chapels, overgrown with vines and fig trees.

We stopped for a lunch break in Fontanelle, which lived up to its name, with a water fountain and benches in the shade. A representative of the tourist office of Teano was waiting patiently for us in the square, while we were waiting patiently for him in front of the church, which was directly above... So we couldn't see each other! But we eventually found one another and he delivered a bag of delicious sandwiches and bottles of iced tea, courtesy of the municipality of Teano!

A house in Fontanelle

The people of Fontanelle appear to be very religious!

After this lunch break we continued on our way towards Teano. It was a pleasant walk, a total of 18 km today with some dramatic scenery as we skirted the caldera of the extinct volcano of Roccamonfina.

Once again we trod on a stretch of Roman pavement, this time on a road built by the Emperor Hadrian - a long way from his Wall, where I walked in 2018!

The town of Teano soon came into view, but first we passed through the hamlet of Casamostra, with its old washtubs by the road.

Upon arriving in Teano we were welcomed by the men from the local tourist office, who served us cold drinks and stored our backpacks in their office while we had coffee with Rosanna Romano and Nadia Murolo, director general and director of the department of tourism and culture of the Region of Campania, and the President of the European Association of the Vie Francigene, Massimo Tedeschi, who discussed the future of the Via Francigena in the region.

Then we visited the town, archaeological museum and cathedral of Teano.

Teano is best known to Italians as the site of the "Handshake of Teano", the famous meeting of 26 October 1860 between Italian nationalist fighter Giuseppe Garibaldi and King Victor Emanuel II. Having wrested the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies from Bourbons of Naples, Garibaldi shook Victor Emanuel's hand and hailed him as King of Italy, sacrificing his hopes of setting up a republic for the sake of Italian unity under a monarchy.

Before arriving to meet with the king, Garibaldi stopped outside Teano and dined on the offerings of the local farmers: bread, cheese, and figs. Exactly what I had for lunch on my way into town today!

But Teano's history goes back much, much farther than the days of Garibaldi! The city was founded in the fourth century BC and was an important centre with a population of fifty thousand in Roman times (only 13 thousand today). It had a theatre with ten thousand seats (almost enough for the town's entire present-day population!) and an amphitheatre one and a half times the size of the Arena in Verona - which remains entirely underground, and unexcavated. There is so much in this part of Italy it is impossible to excavate, study and display it all!

A farmer digging a hole to plant a hazelnut tree in 1907 struck something solid, and on digging farther to investigate, found that his shovel had struck and damaged what may well be the world's oldest nativity scene: a mosaic of Mary, the baby Jesus, the Three Kings, and Saints Peter and Paul, dating back to the fourth century! Note the absence of Joseph, who was not considered important enough to be included in nativity scenes at that point in the history of the early church.

The archaeological museum has plenty of other treasures on view, and many more must lie undiscovered beneath the town, despite the fact that the Roman town was, like many of its counterparts all over the country, used as a handy source of stone conveniently pre-cut into all sorts of nice shapes, and even pre-decorated and carved! Roman stone blocks, columns, capitals and sarcophaguses may be found incorporated into buildings in the town, particularly in the cathedral, which is guarded by a pair of ancient Egyptian sphinxes who formerly guarded the Temple of Isis that stood on the same site in pre-Christian times. Inside the cathedral, largely rebuilt after the destruction of the Second World War, bits of Roman columns are everywhere - even used to hold the holy water by the door.

We met with the town councillor representing the mayor of Teano and went together to the cathedral, where the bishop of Teano welcomed us, gave us a traditional pilgrim blessing, and thanked us for "helping to keep alive the tradition of walking in the footsteps of the saints".