Appia Road Segment 14

From FORMIA (Formiae) to MONDRAGONE (Sinuessa)

This segment is unrecognisable as it has been disrupted by the urban development of the city of Formia (Formiae), an ancient city of the Aurunci (*).

Remains of villas used for summer stays in the Republican (*) and Imperial (*) ages (Cicero, Munanzio Planco in Gaeta) are preserved in and around it.

Beyond Formia (Formiae), the Appia road, partly buried by the SS7 – the modern Appia road, reaches ancient Minturnae (**) with a long straight stretch of road on either side of which there are ruins of tombs. While modern Minturno is further upstream.

To the left we see the beautiful and well-preserved Roman aqueduct with 150 arches.
At Minturnae, the road passes through the centre of the ancient city between the porticoes of tabernae and the Forum.

Returning to the SS7 – the modern Appia road – we cross the Garigliano river on a modern bridge, leaving to the right a suspension bridge built in 1832 to a design by the Ing. Luigi Giura (1795-1864) a spectacular testimony to the entrepreneurial skills of the Kingdom of Naples (*).

From here, the SS7 – the modern Appia road – heads towards the SS6 – Casilina road (old Via Latina)- which it reaches 6 km before Capua ancient Casilinum. Instead, the SS7 quater – variant of  modern Appia road  follows the route of the Appia road parallel to the coast as far as Sinuessa (**), an ancient colony founded in 296 BC in defence of the Appia road, partly buried by the sea and in the grounds of the “Baia azzurra” residence.

A variant of Appia road, built only after 296 BC when the territory of Sessa Aurunca (**) was completely pacified, branches off at Cellole, shortening the route to Capua.

After Cellole, at Torre San Limato, we find a Roman villa by the sea.

Continuing along the SS7 quater we come to Sinuessa, where we can find the remains of a large amphitheatre and the urban area are preserved, including many still paved streets and an abandoned inscription.

Immediately afterwards, the Appia road separates from the SS7 quater, which continues to Pozzuoli under the name “Via Domiziana” long the roman itinerary of the ancient Domiziana road.

In the next section, up to Mondragone, other ancient vestiges (villas, cisterns, opus spicatum (*) pavements, aqueducts and embankments) have been found.

In Mondragone, several sections of a paved road (*) have re-emerged at “Casino La Starza”. Here, where the statio Pagus Sarclanus stood, excavations of a villa and a burial ground have been carried out next to the cemetery.

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in glossary.

are worth a visit.