Room 3 — The Territory
From prehistory to the Middle Ages: human presence in the plain of Fondi
Room 3 presents the main archaeological contexts discovered in the territory of Fondi and its plain. The exhibition follows a chronological order, from the earliest evidence of human presence, attributable to groups of Homo neanderthalensis, through to the later phases of the territory’s history, reaching the Middle Ages.
A large part of the finds comes from domestic contexts of the Roman period, in particular from domus — private residences belonging to the wealthier families. The objects on display — including architectural elements, furnishings, columns, vessels and amphorae — allow us to reconstruct aspects of domestic life and the organisation of living spaces.
Through these materials, the room narrates the evolution of human settlement in the Fondi area and offers a glimpse of the daily life of the communities that inhabited this place over the centuries.
Chianchiarelle
On the shores of Lake Fondi, in the Chiancarelle area, the earliest human traces in the plain have been identified: Aurignacian levels (Upper Palaeolithic, c. 40,000–35,000 years ago) with hearths and combustion deposits, as well as burnt deer and horse bones attesting to hunting, butchering, and on-site consumption. The lacustrine environment provided available water, game and flint, favouring short-term encampments.
The lithic industry documents the entire operational sequence, from prepared cores to blade products and waste flakes. Some pieces were retouched into scrapers for working hides and into points for projectile weapons, while by-products and pebble hammerstones completed the toolkit. Fire — at the centre of daily activity — was used for cooking, carcass processing and lighting. The Chiancarelle site places the plain of Fondi within the earliest phases of the Upper Palaeolithic; Palaeolithic and Neolithic finds from other sectors confirm a long continuity of land use.
Pianara
On the hill of Pianara, overlooking the plain of Fondi and protected by the Aurunci Mountains, lies one of the most evocative places in the area. From here the view extends over a landscape that, since antiquity, connected the interior of the Peninsula with the sea. Walking along the slopes, one can encounter imposing polygonal walls, built dry with enormous stone blocks.
On the summit plateau, a structure founded on the living rock has been discovered; it yielded numerous finds: ceramics, roof tiles, loom weights, spools, and objects connected with domestic and craft activities. Among the earliest finds there is a votive terracotta known as a focaccetta (little flatbread), dating back to the 6th–5th century BC, probably used in religious rituals.
Among the objects on display, a small blue glass alabastron can be seen: a fragment dating to the late 4th or early 3rd century BC, used to contain perfumes or ointments. Originating from the Aegean or the eastern Mediterranean, it attests to the arrival of precious goods at Pianara from distant lands and opens new perspectives on commercial contacts during a phase of Fondi's history that is still poorly documented. From a simple hilltop, Pianara emerges as a crossroads of culture and spirituality, well before the arrival of the Romans.
Amphorae for Draining the Plain
Amphorae were also used to drain the land: laid end to end in trenches, arranged in rows, and covered with sand and pebbles, according to a technique attested elsewhere on the Italian peninsula and intended to prevent the re-emergence of stagnant water. In this way, they filtered and channelled rainwater and groundwater into collection ditches, avoiding waterlogging of the fields.
In the plain of Fondi, the system — documented between the Late Republican period and the 3rd century AD — formed part of a rational water-management strategy that improved the health of settlements and increased soil productivity: estimates suggest the reuse of around 5,000 amphorae. They represent an example of Roman ingenuity and intelligent recycling: containers originally designed for transport became hydraulic infrastructures in the service of agriculture.
Caecubum and Fundanum: the Wines of Fondi
Amphorae tell a story of viticulture, roads and sea. Thanks to the Via Appia, the Via Flacca, and the nearby ports, the wine produced in the plain of Fondi reached Rome and the wider Mediterranean, placing this area within a major trade network.
The most renowned wine was Caecubum: ancient authors praised it as pure and noble, fit for formal banquets. Literary tradition holds that it could be opened decades after sealing — a sign of longevity and refinement. According to the sources, its ideal habitat was the semi-marshy soils typical of the plain of Fondi, made productive through land reclamation and advanced agricultural practice.
Alongside Caecubum, Fondi also produced Fundanum, a robust red wine mentioned by several authors and documented by amphorae stamped "FUNDANUM", found in Rome and Pompeii (c. 33 BC–AD 25).
Villa in the Vallaneto Locality
In the locality of Vallaneto, the remains of a large villa from the early Imperial age are preserved, divided into at least two levels. It was built on a system of terraces that regularises the slope between two heights: the retaining walls, partly used as cisterns, form a central platform around which the residential rooms were arranged. A further order of terraces overlooks Lake San Puoto and, beyond that, the sea.
The complex was served by an aqueduct, still recognisable today alongside a group of cisterns. The materials found — including painted plaster, stucco, fragmentary slabs, brick stamps and other finds — date the villa to the first decades of the Empire and attest to its high social rank.
The “Fonte di Vitruvio”: Water, Faith and Life in Ancient Fondi
On the slopes of the Passignano and Cucuruzzo Mountains, northwest of Fondi, numerous springs once flowed. The most important was the "Fonte di Petrulo": it powered mills, irrigated fields and supported the life of the city. Located outside the walls of ancient Fundi, it is also known as "Fonte di Vitruvio", in memory of a local hero who, according to tradition, led a revolt against Rome in the 4th century BC.
Until the 20th century, monumental remains were visible here; interpreted first as a villa and then as a thermal bath complex, they are now believed to be part of a water system connected to the Roman aqueduct.
In 1952, next to the spring, a votive deposit was discovered with over 150 terracotta objects (3rd–2nd century BC): hands, feet, faces and other body parts offered as votive offerings to water and health divinities. Sanctuaries of this type were common in central and southern Italy: places where spirituality, nature, and everyday life converged.
Casale Mosillo
Casale Mosillo is a small rural settlement located on a low hill between the Abbey of San Magno and Lake Fondi. The visible remains belong to an early medieval church, probably built in the 9th century AD, set within a landscape of cultivated fields and springs. The building had a single nave with a semicircular apse and a raised presbytery, paved with reused marble slabs. Inside, the step separating the nave from the presbytery is preserved, along with fragments of plutei and carved chancel screens — also dating to the 9th century AD.
The walls incorporate reused Roman blocks and inscriptions (1st–4th century AD), recalling the presence of an earlier rural settlement. Around the church, remains of service rooms and a small fortified structure attest to the life of an active farming community between the Early and Late Middle Ages, before the site was abandoned by the 14th century.
Exhibits on display
Art and Faith of the Early Christians: the Sarcophagus of Fondi
Early Christian period — Limestone
This Early Christian sarcophagus has a rectangular chest. The front is decorated with strigillated (undulating) channels and a figural relief: the Good Shepherd appears at either side; at the centre an orant (praying figure) is flanked by two figures interpreted as saints or apostles. The velum (curtain) framing the central scene evokes the passage to the afterlife and the draperies associated with funerary rites.
On the lid, pastoral scenes are arranged around a reserved inscription panel intended for the deceased's name. The decoration confined to the front suggests that the sarcophagus was originally set against a wall or within a niche. The monument attests both the spread of Christianity and the high standard of funerary sculpture produced for the earliest Christian communities of Fondi.
The Face of Livia Drusilla: the Mother of the Empire
Julio-Claudian period — Marble
The head is identified as Livia Drusilla, the third wife of Augustus and the mother of Tiberius and Drusus Major. This identification is based on iconographic and physiognomic features: a realistic, mature face, pronounced cheekbones, a small mouth and large eyes. She wears the so-called "all'Ottavia" hairstyle (a frontal curl gathered into a braid and an occipital bun), typical of women of the imperial family. The cloak drawn over her head (capite velato) presents her as Julia Augusta, in a priestly capacity after AD 14.
The attribution is supported by comparison with a similar portrait preserved in Barcelona and by the local context, rich in evidence from the Julio-Claudian age. Livia Drusilla was a member of the gens Claudia, daughter of Livius Drusus Claudianus and Alfidia. According to historiographical tradition, she spent her childhood between Rome and Fondi, where the Claudia family owned extensive property. This portrait combines dynastic history, public worship and the memory of the city.
Helios: the Face that Travelled Through Time
Roman period, Hellenistic influence — Marble — Discovered in Fondi in 1936
The marble head of Alexander the Great, depicted as the Sun god Helios, was discovered by chance in 1936 in the centre of Fondi during sewer works. It features an idealised face and flowing locks. It must have belonged to an honorary statue in a public context, reflecting Hellenistic influence and the artistic quality achieved in the Roman period in the territory of Fondi.
Hidden between 1944 and the 1960s, it reappeared in 1964 at the Archaeological Museum of the University of Münster. In the 2000s, following an agreement between the Italian and German authorities, it was returned to the Fondi Museum, where it is now displayed as one of the most significant pieces in the collection.
The Statue of the “Vittimario”
Roman period — Marble — Discovered in 1952, Via dei Volsci
In 1952, during foundation works on Via dei Volsci, a large Roman statue was discovered in several fragments. The figure, which was already incomplete in antiquity, was first housed in the city's first Antiquarium. Following a theft in 1980, the statue arrived at the Civic Museum after its subsequent recovery. It is currently missing its head and one leg.
The discovery site and the presence of surrounding masonry suggest that the sculpture was originally set against a wall, as part of a monumental group depicting a sacrificial scene. Today, the statue is interpreted as a "Luperco", one of the priests who performed purification and fertility rites linked to the cult of the Lupercalia: a Roman religious festival celebrated in February in honour of Faunus Lupercus, involving ritual races by the priests (Luperci) intended to protect the city and ensure fertility and prosperity.
