Ficulle

Ficulle is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Terni in the Italian region Umbria, located about 40 km southwest of Perugia and about 60 km northwest of Terni. According to tradition, Ficulle originated from a colony of Ficulea, an ancient city near Nomentum (modern Mentana) in Sabina. A Latin inscription discovered beyond the river Paglia, later moved to a church outside the town, refers to a cave, an altar, and small statues dedicated by a certain Tiberius Claudius Thermodonte to Sol Invictus Mithra. A bridge known as the Ponte del muro grosso was attributed to the time of Nero. Archaeological excavations carried out in 1854 uncovered numerous Etruscan vases and the large skeleton of an animal, identified at the time as a prehistoric mastodon. In the Middle Ages, a Benedictine abbey stood nearby; its fiefs later passed directly under the control of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. Ficulle is first recorded in 1292 as one of the direct domains of the municipality of Orvieto. In 1432 Ficulle was incorporated into the Papal States. The authority of local lords was curtailed in 1461, when Pope Pius II ordered the exile of Gentile Monaldeschi. During the Roman Republic of 1798 it formed part of the canton of Orvieto under the Delegation of Viterbo. In the early 19th century, under Napoleonic rule, it became an autonomous canton with a mayor within the district of Todi in the Department of Trasimeno. After the Restoration of 1815 it returned to the district of Orvieto under the Delegation of Viterbo. In the mid-19th century Ficulle had a population of 1,850 individuals, of whom 843 resided within the town and 1,007 in the surrounding countryside. In September 1860 Ficulle was occupied by Garibaldian forces and annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia. Ficulle is situated on a hill at an elevation of 437 metres (1,434 ft) above sea level, about 22 kilometres (14 mi) from Orvieto and not far from the course of the Chiani. Ficulle is subject to both cold northern and warm southern winds. The town overlooks a wide surrounding landscape. About 1 mile (1.6 km) from the town are the woods of Monte Albano and Poggio. At a similar distance along the ancient Via Cassia, in a place called Bagnaccio, there is a neglected thermo-sulphurous spring near a small volcanic feature, which was considered suitable for baths. Near the town rises the stream Piscinello, formed from the drainage of public fountains, which flows into the Chiani. Ficulle borders the following municipalities: Allerona, Fabro, Montegabbione, Orvieto, Parrano, San Venanzo. The municipality includes the localities of Cappuccini, Conventaccio, Ficulle, Olevole, Poggi, Sala, San Cristoforo, San Lazzaro, Santa Cristina. In 2021, 460 people lived in rural dispersed dwellings not assigned to any named locality. At the time, the most populous locality was Ficulle proper (788).

© wikipedia

Ficulle is a stopover point on The Via Romea Germanica. You can reach Civitas Vaticana - Città del Vaticano in 9 days and Orvieto in one day.