【Eternal City】
The British 17th-century writer John Evelyn lamented in his diary: "There was once a city called London, but now it no longer exists. The development of industrialization has obscured many ancient urban ruins, and only a few cities have been lucky enough to retain the style of a thousand years ago, such as Rome.
There is a saying in the book "Roman Archaeology": "Rome is constantly buried and destroyed, but it has never disappeared." For more than two thousand years, the Romans repeated one thing, covering the old ruins with new buildings. Medieval churches, town halls, and residences are buried under the foundations of ancient Roman squares and temples. Until the historical heritage broke ground, an "eternal city" spanning ancient Rome and modern times earned thousands of emotions.
Roman Avenue
"All roads lead to Rome" refers to a number of ways to achieve the goal.
This proverb can be traced back to the road system built by the Romans. All provinces of the Empire had direct access to the city of Rome, so that the rulers living in Rome could contact the governors of the provinces and monitor the situation in the provinces. Once war breaks out, the army can also move quickly.
"All roads lead to Rome" was first mentioned by the French theologian and poet Alain de Lille in 1175, and the original sentence "Mille viae ducunt homines per saecula Romam (a thousand roads lead people to Rome forever)" appears in his book Liber Parabolarum.
The Persians and Egyptians had already begun to build roads, but the Romans went further, building an extensive, structured network of roads. Unlike the early roads, it was not reserved for kings to travel or marches, but rather a public, toll-free, road system that served both the rural and urban populations. All roads have sidewalks and signposts, and coaching stations are set up at intervals to provide horse changes and accommodation. The Roman Post used an efficient road system to deliver mail in the imperial provinces, facilitating the exchange of information between the provinces and the capital.
来源：Rome The Third City Wikia
Several important roads stretch out from Rome: Via Flaminia, Via Salario, Via Aurelian, Via Cassia, and Via Appia.
These roads were used until the Middle Ages, the most famous of which is the Via Appia, which has a history of more than 2,300 years and has witnessed the heyday and decline of the empire. It stretches from Rome to Brindisi and spans more than 500 kilometers across Italy.
Even today, the Roman road system is valuable. Modern roads from Rome to southern Italy are built along the ancient Roman Via Appia.
The Appia Trail
The Avenue of Appia was built in 312 BC after its designer Apius Kaikus and is known as the "Regina Viarum (Queen of the Roads)". The road was originally used for military purposes, namely to transport military supplies from Rome to Capua in southern Italy during the Samnit War. Beginning in 190 BC, the Avenida de Apia extended to Brindisi further south. Brindisi was one of the main transshipment points for trade with the East, so the importance of the Avenida de Apia as a trade route was revealed.
The Appia Trail is mostly covered in concrete, and only a few sections of the Roman stone path are still bathed in sunlight.
Appia Road Sign
Before the Via Appia, the Roman roads were dirt roads, and each rain would muddy the roads and make them impassable when vehicles fell into the mud. The Romans laid dense basalt slabs and drainage canals to ensure road stability and smooth drainage. Vehicles and pedestrians can travel in all weather conditions.
The Avenue of Appia is very flat. It is said that Apius walked barefoot on the road to test whether the road was smooth. Unfortunately, the years have changed, and the ancient road more than 2,000 years ago has become uneven.
With the decline of the Western Roman Empire, the Avon de Apia fell into disrepair and became increasingly dilapidated. By the 6th century AD, the road was already in bad condition. Under the comprehensive restoration of the Pope and the King of Naples, it once again became the main passage from Rome to southern Italy.
The Avenue of Apia has had many stories of singing and weeping.
In the Spartan uprising, 6,000 rebel slaves were crucified on the Avenue of Apia. During the Gothic War, the famous Eastern Roman general Belisarius still marched along this road.
The Avenue of Appia also plays an important role in Christianity. In 68 AD, when the persecution of Christians was at its peak, the apostle St. Peter fled Rome along the Avenue of Apia. But on the Rue de Apia, Jesus made an apparition to St. Peter. St. Peter said, "Lord, what's wrong with you?" and Jesus replied, "Go to Rome and be crucified again." Then Peter followed his Lord to martyrdom.
Today, the Via Appia begins at the ruins of the southern gate of Aurelian's walls. On both sides of the avenue, you can see ancient Roman and medieval historical sites, such as churches, crypts, and castles.
For hygiene reasons, Roman law prohibited the construction of cemeteries inside the city, so ancient Roman necropolises were mostly outside the city. Wealthy Roman families built cemeteries on both sides of the Piazza appia and built magnificent monumental buildings that demonstrated their power and prestige.
The poor also chose this famous thoroughfare as a cemetery, especially a catacomb like St. Sebastian. To solve the problem of space and the high cost of land, the Romans tried to dig the crypt. Since rome is surrounded by softer tuff, easy to excavate and sufficiently supportive, the multi-storey tunnel underground cemetery is the preferred burial place. There are vertical skylights in the crypts for ventilation and lighting.
In the 1st century, Roman Christians did not have their own cemetery. Christians who own land will build family cemeteries, while poor Christians can only choose public cemeteries, but there are also pagans buried in cemeteries. The body of St. Peter was buried in the large public "dead city" on the Vatican Hill. St. Paul was also buried in a public cemetery on Austians Avenue.
In the first half of the 2nd century, thanks to various grants and donations, Christians had their own tombs and no longer had to share the afterlife with pagans. Some tombs are administered directly by the Church, such as the Catacombs of St. Carristo.
According to the Edict of Milan issued by Emperor Constantine in 313, Christians became the legal religion. They could openly embrace Christianity, own places of worship and build churches inside and outside the city, and could buy land without fear of confiscation. However, the catacombs continued to exist as regular cemeteries until the fall of the Empire.
Source: Walks Inside Rome
The Catacombs of San Calisto is one of the greatest and most important catacombs in Rome, the official cemetery of the Church of Rome, where dozens of martyrs, 16 popes and a very large number of Christians are buried. The tomb is named after the deacon Caristo, who was appointed by Pope Zephyrus as the administrator of the cemetery.
When the Germans invaded Rome, they destroyed magnificent buildings, looted property, and even the catacombs were not spared. In the face of barbarian plunder, the Pope was powerless. In the late 8th and early 9th centuries, for safety reasons, the Pope ordered the transfer of the relics of the saints in the catacombs to the city churches. With the exception of the Catacombs of St. Sebastian, St. Lawrence and St. Pankratus, the other catacombs were completely abandoned. Over time, landslides and vegetation obscured the entrance to the catacombs, and traces of their presence gradually disappeared.
During the Renaissance, the exploration of the catacombs began with Antonio Bosio, the "Columbus under the Roman Underground.". By the 19th century, Giovanni Rossi, the "father of Christian archaeology," was conducting systematic exploration of the catacombs, particularly the catacombs of San Calisto. The mysterious Underground World of Rome has only reappeared in the public discourse.
The Catacombs are just one of the many historical legacies of the Via Appia, with numerous churches and fortresses. Piazza Appia is not a popular attraction in Rome, and it is not fun to walk a few kilometers in one go. If it weren't for my friends insisting on going, I might have missed this Masterpiece of the Romans.
A friend returned from the Via Appia and wrote a paragraph: "It has been 6 years since I first read Shinobu Shinobu's The Story of the Romans, and I was amazed by the road built by the Romans, and I didn't expect to really come here after 6 years." ”
I feel the same way. Since traveling in Europe, many previously unseen cities, buildings, and paintings have popped out of the pages. I couldn't be satisfied with seeing and hearing, and I wanted to know the story behind them, so I decided to open a public account to write a tweet.
The process of writing tweets is also the path of learning.