To the far northern end of the historic Italian city of Orvieto, there is a panoramic clearing.
Located near the entrance to the city and close by Saint Patrick's Well, just before Piazza Cahen, this shady area of greenery and pretty pathways is situated on a cliffside with views across the Umbrian countryside and is home to an ancient Etruscan temple.
The Temple of Belvedere is the best conserved monument of Etruscan Orvieto and a visit to the site offers beautiful views, scenic surroundings and a taster of Italian history outside the stuffier and more traditional parameters of a museum setting. If you are interested in history or archaeological discoveries, this is the place for you. Just find a holiday rental in Orvieto and make your way to the northern part of town.
Located near the entrance to the city and close by Saint Patrick's Well, just before Piazza Cahen, this shady area of greenery and pretty pathways is situated on a cliffside with views across the Umbrian countryside and is home to an ancient Etruscan temple.
The Temple of Belvedere is the best conserved monument of Etruscan Orvieto and a visit to the site offers beautiful views, scenic surroundings and a taster of Italian history outside the stuffier and more traditional parameters of a museum setting. If you are interested in history or archaeological discoveries, this is the place for you. Just find a holiday rental in Orvieto and make your way to the northern part of town.
The remains consist of a temple where you can see the stairway and some parts of the foundation and columns. The rest of the temple, probably built with wooden parts, have long since been lost. It is thought that the temple was built to honour Tinia, the equivalent of the god, Jupiter, for the Etruscans.
Dating to some time between the 5th and 6th centuries B.C., it was a building of worship probably linked to the underworld, as revealed by some excavated structures and a black, varnished vase with a painted dedication to Tinia. Several architectonic terra-cotta elements which were once part of the building are now on display in the museums of Museo Claudio Faina and Museo Archeologico Nazionale and are considered to be especially fine examples of their kind.
Dating to some time between the 5th and 6th centuries B.C., it was a building of worship probably linked to the underworld, as revealed by some excavated structures and a black, varnished vase with a painted dedication to Tinia. Several architectonic terra-cotta elements which were once part of the building are now on display in the museums of Museo Claudio Faina and Museo Archeologico Nazionale and are considered to be especially fine examples of their kind.
Discovered in 1828 during construction on via Cassia Nuova, the temple has since become an important attraction in the town. Though only the walls and foundations remain, the original plan of the building has been pieced back together. Originally, it would have been a building preceded by an entrance hall with four columns on the front behind which an area opened out with three cells alongside the central part being wider than the side parts. It is one of the typical temple buildings defined as "Etruscan-Italian" by Vitruvius. During the excavation a large number of architectonic terra-cotta were recovered belonging to at least two building phases.
Evidence shows that the temple was burned several times and little of the original structure remains but the peaceful setting and beautiful surroundings are what make the visit out to this sight truly worth it. The evocative location has a bit of a mystic atmosphere and one can only imagine how it looked when the temple was in its prime. This attraction is a key one in this Italian town but also offers a moment of pause and quiet instead of a manic tourist destination.
Evidence shows that the temple was burned several times and little of the original structure remains but the peaceful setting and beautiful surroundings are what make the visit out to this sight truly worth it. The evocative location has a bit of a mystic atmosphere and one can only imagine how it looked when the temple was in its prime. This attraction is a key one in this Italian town but also offers a moment of pause and quiet instead of a manic tourist destination.
Photo credits
Picture 1: Fantasy / CC BY-SA 3.0
Picture 1: Fantasy / CC BY-SA 3.0
