Viale Vittorio Veneto, 8
00044 Frascati (ROME)
Tel. [+39] 06.9416110
Fax [+39] 06.9416546
E-mail: info@hotel-flora.it
VAT N° 01691851008

Hotel Flora - Guided visits

Visit to Tuscolo

The ancient land where Telegono, Ulisse's and Maga Circe's son, founded the city, was made powerful from the Lega Sacrale Albana, then under the Romans after the famous war of Lago Regillo.

The Roman citizenship of Tuscolo is from 380 BC, when the Romans occupied it to join it with the tribe Papiria. Soon after it drew the attention from the noble roman families who came to Tuscolum and built luxurious villas, due to its beautiful landscapes and its abundant quantity of water.

Tourist route

You can get to Tuscolo by the road that starts from Piazza Marconi in Frascati on the left of Villa Aldobrandini. Along the road at about 4km, you get to a wide parking space where a narrow very old road starts to take you to the ancient roman amphitheatre.

The amphitheatre could have up to 300 spectators, it was a building of elliptic shape, for gladiator shows, fairs and gymnastic shows. It is dated second century ac, about one century after the building of the Colossium. Low down, on the northeast, there are the ruins of a door. On its eastern side you can see the ruins of villa Tiberio moved here from Capri.

Along parks and green spaces there was the praetorium, with a wide arch and Greek style rooms. On the highest part of the villas are the cisterns that kept rain water, and were used for the private thermal pools and the fountains of the gardens, with nymphs and statues, gym and libraries, reserved room for the guests. Just around it, some ruins from Villa Quintili were discovered, also from villa Passino Crispo and maybe villa Asinio Pollione.

On the northern side of the arch, where is today a cross, you can see the ruins of the city wall of the colony. On the eastern side, after a short distance of ancient road, there are the ruins of a theatre from the 1st century BC where written is an inscription of a visit of Papa Gregorio XVI in 1839 to Maria Cristina, widow of Carlo Felice who loved Frascati so much that he sponsored the excavation at Tuscolo.

Going down towards Via dei Sepolcri, in the lowest part there are other ruins and sculptures. Nowadays Tuscolo, is more a place of promenade and school visits that a place of historic and archaeological interest.