In the municipality of Cividate Camuno lies the Parco Archeologico del Teatro e dell'Anfiteatro, where

visitors have the opportunity to view part of the Roman centre Civitas Camunnorum, which was also the

which was also the centre of the Camunni. The largest part of the state-financed,

20,000 square metre park is taken up by the ancient theatre situated on a slope and the amphitheatre

the adjacent amphitheatre, but there are also the remains of a small thermal bath and a cult room.

cult room can also be discovered.

The impressive backdrop gives you a very precise idea of what this place must have looked like in ancient times.

must have looked in ancient times. Alberto, one of the Italian students who had already visited us in Oldenburg

who had already visited us in Oldenburg, hit the nail on the head when he said that places like this give him goose bumps

because you can really feel the history. Dr Serena Solano, archaeologist and director of the

and director of the park, managed to bring the ruins to life with her wealth of background information and

and exciting stories. Among other things, she explained to us that the cult room,

in front of which we were standing was used by the gladiators to do some soul-searching before the battle.

before the fight. One corner further on was the room where the animals were kept before they were let into the arena.

were let into the arena.

But as well as the stories about the theatres, Mrs Solano also knew a lot about the Civitas Camunnorum

had a lot to tell. For example, the excavations in the area, unlike in other places,

no evidence of defences such as ramparts or towers has been found, from which it can be

which leads to the conclusion that the Valcamonica valley, which was only Romanised in the late first century A.D.

Romanised in the late first century AD, was so peaceful due to the Pax Romana initiated by Emperor Augustus that there was simply no need for such architecture.

that there was simply no need for such architecture. The reason for this was that in a

comparatively small community such as the Civitas Camunnorum, the theatre and the amphitheatre

amphitheatre, two cultural institutions provided entertainment for the citizens.

the citizens with the theatre and the amphitheatre is that the municipality was easy to reach for infrastructural reasons and thus

attracted spectators from further afield.

Left:

Parco Archeologico del Teatro e dell'Anfiteatro:

www.parcoarcheologicocividate.valcamonicaromana.beniculturali.it

Comune di Cividate Camuno:

www.cividatecamuno.gov.it/pages/home.asp