What is Acquapendente known for?

Floral mosaic festival dating to 1166, when the town freed itself from Frederick Barbarossa; held each third Sunday of May. Old nickname earned by the Basilica del Santo Sepolcro and its sacellum, a stone copy of the Jerusalem tomb in the Romanesque crypt. The northernmost Lazio stage on the pilgrim road to Rome, with a continuous tradition of hostels from the medieval period.

Where is Acquapendente?

Acquapendente is a comune in the province of Viterbo, Lazio region of Italy, about 106 kilometers from Terni.

Lazio · Viterbo

Acquapendente

The northernmost town in Lazio on the Via Francigenaabove the Paglia, named in 964 for its waterfalls.

106 km / 66 mi

Nearest hub (Terni)

5,266

Population

Apr–Oct

Best time to visit

Recognised as

Why come

Acquapendente sitson the northern edge of Lazio, where the Paglia river marks the boundary with Tuscany. The name first appears in a document of Emperor Otto I dated 964, taken from the small waterfalls that drop the river toward the plain. The town grew up on the Via Francigena, the medieval pilgrim road from Canterbury to Rome, and the Basilica del Santo Sepolcro at its center holds one of the most important Romanesque crypts in Italy. Twenty-four columns divide the eleventh-century space into nine naves; a sacellum carved into the rock at its center copies the form of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and gave the town its old nickname, the Green Jerusalem. The third Sunday of May brings the Pugnaloni, floral mosaics on wooden panels carried through the streets by each quarter, a tradition that began in 1166 when the town rose against Frederick Barbarossa. The frazione of Torre Alfina, with its restored neo-Gothic castle, is itself one of the Borghi più belli d'Italia.

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Gallery

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Known for

Basilica Concattedrale del Santo Sepolcro
Romanesque cathedral with eleventh-century crypt of twenty-four columns and a sacellum reproducing the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
Pugnaloni
Floral mosaic panels carried through the streets each third Sunday of May, commemorating the 1166 uprising against Barbarossa.
Castello di Torre Alfina
Neo-Gothic restored fortress in the frazione of Torre Alfina, itself listed among I Borghi più belli d'Italia.
Via Francigena stage
First Lazio stage of the pilgrim road from Canterbury to Rome, with pilgrim hostels still operating along the historic route.
Riserva Naturale Monte Rufeno
Nearly 3,000 hectares of oak and beech forest north of town, with marked trails and the Museo del Fiore at its edge.

When to visit

Best months · Apr–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

April through June and September into October are the months for walking the Via Francigena and the trails of Monte Rufeno. The Pugnaloni festival fills the streets on the third Sunday of May and is the single best weekend in the calendar. July and August touch the mid-thirties in the Paglia valley; pilgrims start earlier and finish by mid-morning. November through March is quiet and cold, with damp winds from the Tuscan border. Most pilgrim hostels stay open but on shorter hours, and the basilica's crypt holds its temperature year-round.