Narni

Situated in southern Umbria, Narni is a splendid town rich in history, secured on a calcareous rocky spur overlooking the Nera river, considered the geographical centre of Italy. The town's rich artistic heritage, accrued over three thousand years, is visible above-ground, while below-ground it reveals the past of the entire region: from the Etruscans and the Romans to the Middle Ages

HISTORY
As the Ancient Umbrian town called Nequinum, it was conquered by the Romans in 299 BC and made first of all a colony and then an important municipium with the name Narnia. Attacked and destroyed by Totila, King of the Ostrogoths, Narni was then for a brief period made part of the Duchy of Spoleto by the Longobards. Subsequently it became part of the Duchy of Rome belonging to the Countess Matilde di Canossa and passed to the Church. After the turbulence of the early Middle Ages Narni experienced a period of power and richness in the 11th century, until Frederick Barbarossa in 1174 imposed his dominion. In the following years the town continually battled against Fredrick II and the Duchy of Spoleto. In the 14th century it was included in the dominion of the Catholic Church by Cardinal Albornoz. After occupation by Ladislas, King of Sicily, it was regained by the Church and in 1572 was defeated and destroyed by Charles V. Political instability continued till the 17th century when it became part of the Papal States and remained under the Church's dominion, except for the brief Napoleonic period, until 1860.

ART, CULTURE, ENVIRONMENT
The town has a rich heritage acquired over three thousand years of history: from Roman times the Ponte di Augusto, and the Ponte Cadona bridges, and the Formina aqueduct are still standing. Narni has numerous medieval monuments such as the Cathedral of San Giovenale with its Romanesque portal and the votive chapel dedicated to the patron saint from the 7th century; the church of San Domenico today home to the library and the Historical Archives; the church of Santa Maria Imprensole (1175),jewel of Narni's Romanesque architecture. Also of interest are the church of Sant'Agostino(15th century), and the church of San Francesco (14th century). Wonderful Piazza dei Priori features the austere Palazzo del Podestà, now the Town Hall, decorated with Roman and medieval marble work, a painting by Ghirlandaio, and a fresco by Lo Spagna; and the Loggia dei Priori with its delightful Loggia del Banditore.

And the Rocca Albornoziana stands above the rest. Recently restored, it was erected in the last half of the 14th century in accordance with the wishes of Cardinal Albornoz, to dominate the highest point of the town built up on its rocky spur.

Apart from monuments to be visited above-ground, there is an exciting underground world to be found in the striking itineraries of Narni Underground: aqueducts, water cisterns, tunnels, crypts, and even the torture room from the Inquisitorial Tribunal with a cell showing the prisoners graffiti written while waiting for sentencing. Underground Narni is a world apart hollowed out of rock since Etruscan times. It is a mysterious and fascinating macrocosm enclosed within the town that is the destination of an itinerary through history, art, and the culture of other ages. A visit to below-surface Narni becomes like a journey into the past to discover an underground city thousands of years old.

Narni Underground
For lovers of art and history, Narni offers the 'interesting possibility of a very well-organized visit to many subterranean places.
During the visit, one can admire the subterranean rooms of the antique convent complex of St.Dominic, along with the adjoining protoromanic church with its frescoes of the 13th and 15th centuries and the remains of a Roman complex with a cistern and a cell richly decorated with graffiti made by prisoners imprisoned by the Inquisition Court. Further on, one passes into the underground rooms of St.Maria Impensole, a church with three naves which originally dates back to the 8th century and was erected above the remains of a Roman temple.
It was trasformed into a crypta during the 12th century, and still conserves two cisterns dating back to Roman times. The underground remains of the Roman acqueduct of the "Formina" follow: it is possibile to take a walk inside the tunnels of St. Biagio, St. Sylvester and the Ippolito Mountain. Lastly, a large cistern called "Lacus" dating back to the late Middle Ages is to be found under Piazza Garibaldi, with vaults of slate and remains of pavement in opus spicatum.

A good occasion to visit Narni is the "Race of the ring ", the main event of a large historic evocation organized during the days preceding and following the celebration of the protector San Giovenale and that has its origin in the traditional ceremonies dating back to the first half of the XIVth century.
The event is a travel through the moments forecast and codified in the Communal Statutes of 1371 after Christ, following the "reading of the banno", when horse riding brigands called at the "certamen" the cavaliers of Narni in order to have them demonstrate their preparation for the defence of the city. On the evening itself the program goes on with the "Offer of the Wax in the Cathedral" made by the communal authorities and the representants of the Arts and of the Castles that during the Middle Ages were under the jurisdiction of the city. A night parade, composed of more than 600 personages, reaches the Cathedral to give an homage to the tomb of San Giovenale, first Bishop of Narni. On May 3rd, during the celebration of the saint protector, takes place on the "Platea Major", the actual "Piazza dei Priori" the

"Historic Race of the Ring".
It consists of an equestrian race, to which during the Antiquity were allowed to participate all the young men of Narni possessing a horse, during which the cavaliers must take with a silver spar a ring hanging to two cables in front of the Communal Palace.
On the Saturday preceding the second Sunday of May takes place the Historic Parade in costume with the Pontifical and Communal authorities, the ones of the Terzieri, the Corporations and the noble families.
At the end of the celebrations, on the second Sunday of May, the three historic terzieri of the city fight against each other in the "Race of the ring" in the stadium San Girolamo, best known during these days as "land of the games". The cavaliers, each one recognized thanks to the colours of its team, respectively white-black for Mezule, red-blue for Fraporta and orange-viola for Santa Maria fight in a direct duel of ability and fastness.
Halfway of the elliptic circuit are placed the rings that each one of both cavaliers, galloping on his own horse, must take with the spar, in such a way to collect three of them in the fastest possible way. In fact, at this moment, an electric device makes fall down all the remaining rings on the ground making it impossible for the other cavalier to collect them and therefore deciding the victory of a cavalier over the other.

In the surroundings of Narni of considerable interest is the cave of S. Urbano founded by Saint Francis 12 km from town, it has a cloister from the 1400s; the Abbey of San Cassiano; the ex Franciscan monastery of San Girolamo; the church of San Pudenziana in Visciano that together with that of San Michele Arcangelo in Schifanoia represent two of the most interesting Romanesque buildings in the area around Narni.

TO VISIT
Rocca Albornoziana, fortress
The church of San Domenico
Underground Narni

EVENTS
Corsa all'Anello, ring race in period costume (end April - beg. May)
Feast day of San Giovenale, patron saint (3 May)
Il ciclo delle Intusse della Valle dell'Aia (end May - beg. June)
Narni, Le vie del cinema - film festival (1st week July)
Narni Black Festival, jazz (first weekend September)
Torneo delle Giostre (September)
Festival of chestnuts and new wine (second week of November)

TYPICAL PRODUCTS
Wine: Narni is part of the Vini Etrusco Romana Wine Route.