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Casale dei Francesi
The Casale dei Francesi belongs to the area of the Muro dei Francesi, an archaeological and historical site in the territory of Ciampino, on the outskirts of Rome. The name comes from a battle of 1379: here the condottiere Alberico da Barbiano, on the side of Pope Urban VI, defeated the French troops of the antipope Clement VII, in the years of the Western Schism. In the seventeenth century the Colonna family built an estate on the site.
What to see
The Colonna estate was known above all for the Baroque portal designed by the architect Girolamo Rainaldi: it stood until 2011, when it collapsed for structural reasons.
The site also includes the villa of the consul Marcus Valerius Messalla Corvinus, right-hand man of Octavian Augustus and friend of Ovid: the remains came to light during the works for the underpass of the Rome-Albano railway line. Among the finds the statues of the Niobids stand out, the protagonists of a myth that Ovid tells in the Metamorphoses.
Visiting
In 2014 the World Monuments Fund recognised the Muro dei Francesi as cultural heritage of world interest. Whether and how the area can be visited should be checked with the town of Ciampino.
Our editors' tip
The town council has asked the bodies that hold them to return the finds discovered in its territory, with the idea of bringing them together in a museum in Ciampino: before setting out, find out where the Niobids are on display.
Tours & experiences in Ciampino
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Near Ciampino
The closest destinations covered by our editors, with straight-line distance.
