The sanctuary on Monte Sant'Angelo
On the southern edge of the Pontine plain, where the mountains reach the sea, Terracina is an ancient town of Volscian and Roman origin, the Roman Anxur or Tarracina, which was an important station on the Via Appia, the "queen of roads". The town is divided into the modern lower part, with beaches and a port, and the upper town, built on the remains of the Roman city, where the Duomo di San Cesareo stands on the podium of a Roman temple overlooking the Foro Emiliano, the ancient forum, still paved with its original Roman slabs, crossed by the Via Appia. A short distance from the centre, at the Pisco Montano, the Romans cut the rock vertically for about 36 metres to allow the Via Appia to pass along the sea, marking the depth of the cut with numbers carved in the wall every ten Roman feet, still visible today.
On the top of Monte Sant'Angelo, at about 230 metres, dominating the town, the sea and the whole plain, stands the Sanctuary of Jupiter Anxur, built in the first century BC, one of the most spectacular Roman sites in Lazio. Its huge platform rests on a series of large arches and vaulted rooms, which, seen from below, create an image of great impact, especially when illuminated at night. From the terrace of the sanctuary, the view is breathtaking: the coast to the Circeo, the Pontine Islands, the plain, the lake of Fondi and the mountains. The temple can be reached by car or on foot along a path from the upper town, among olive trees and Mediterranean scrub.
Tip: climb up to the Temple of Jupiter at sunset; walk along the Via Appia in the Foro Emiliano in the upper town.
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