The MSS groups' first home in Italy,
Rieti, is a wonderful city to explore the history of Italy, from the Ancient times until nowadays. It has remarkable monuments and remains from all ages – specially from the Middle Ages -, as you will see also in some other Italian cities.But what you will not find in other cities – including Rome – is the traditional centre of Italy!Even when it is not geographically exact – and they don’t care – Rieti has been always known as the Italian Belly button – the Umbilicus Italiae, from the times of the ancient Romans.
Already after the Romans domination, in the late 3rd Century BC, the village of Rieti became a strategic point in the Italian road network, dominating the “salt way” (Vía Salaria) that still nowadays runs all the way to Rome. At those times, Via Salaria had linked Rome to the Adriatic Sea through the Apennines. Then, Rieti could be found in the writings of Virgil and Pliny the Elder, described as the centre of the Italian peninsula.
According to the ancient historians di Alicarnasso and Varrone, lake Paterno used to lie where Rieti is. The lake had an island in the middle, which they referred to as the belly button of Italy. The two small lakes you can find today (Laghi Reatini) are what is left after the Romans made a cut on a hill near Marmore. The cut created the tallest Italian waterfall, called Cascata delle Marmore.
Along the Middle Ages, Rieti kept the title of Italian Umbilicus, as they believed that the distance from the Adriatic to the Tyrrhenian Sea was 104 Italian miles, and Rieti was the centre of this way. As it was also in the exact centre between Augusta Praetorio (nowadays Aosta) and Cabo dell’Armi (in Calabria), whose distance was 620 miles.
Rieti has been an important gastaldate during Lombard domination, a country capital during the Franks, a favorite Papal seat, and finally a provincial capital, but it has never lost the title of Italian Centre.
In the 19th Century, a granite stone was situated in the middle of the Piazza San Rufo, which was called the centre of Italy since then:
Piazza San Rufo Centro d’Italia.
Some years later, the granite stone was substituted by another stone in which you could read: Medium Totius Italiae. But this inscribed stone was stolen! So on March 29th 1950 they settled a plaque with the words “Centre of Italy” in 20 different languages, in the Piazza San Rufo Centro d'Italia.
And finally in the year 2001, the city received as a present a monument nicknamed the “Caciotta” (see the "map" pic above), which you will be able to see in your first days in Rieti, belly button of Italy, Europe… Even today, it is still called the Umbilicus Italiae. They even have a facebook group!
By the way, Cacciota is a young, mild and small artisan cheese from the centre of Italy – specially from Tuscany – which can be found in different varieties: saffron, garlic, mustard… yummy!
References:
Rieti
Umibilicus Italiae
Cacciota cheese:
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