Via Cassia Romana

The ancient Via Cassia joined Rome to Florence by passing through the center of Bolsena (Volsinii Vetus), Chiusi (Clusium) and Arezzo (Arretium). The first part which goes out from Rome (Ponte Milvio La Storta) was common to the Via Cassia and the Via Clodia, and then it continued along the Cassia towards the north and along the Clodia towards the north-east. The construction of the Via Clodia can be dated between the late 4th century B.C. and the first half of the 3rd century B.C., while the Via Cassia is identified with C. Cassius Longinus (censor in 154 B.C.), or with Cassius Longinus Ravilla (consul in 127 B.C.), the manufacturer of the important arterial route. The Via Cassia route, with its stations, can be identified with both Tabula Peutingeriana, medieval copy of a complete itinerary of the 3rd - 4th century B.C. Roman Empire, and with the Itinerarium Antonini, a road guide of the Caracalla period (211-216 A.D.), that lists the cities, their stations and the distance between them. After the second half of the 6th century, during the Lombard rule, the Via Cassia became a linking artery between the different dukedoms.

The Lombard penetration from the north favoured the consolidation of a road that was connected with the Via Cassia in Bolsena, by passing through the Siena valleys, from the Cisa Apennine. This was the first part of the next Via Francigena, which allowed the northern European pilgrims to reach Rome. The ancient Via Cassia currently is intact for long stretches and it is still used by vehicular traffic. This lighted stretch is is located in Poggiaccio, has a length of 200 meters and preserves the structural features of the Roman age. the road section confirms the size of 3.9 meters, found in other parts of the route, and it corresponds approximately to 13 Roman feet ( 1 Roman foot = 29.6 cm). The paving was realised directly on the beaten ground. In this point the road, unlike in other stretches, is bordered by footpaths and bollards placed at regular distances.

In front of the shrine dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary has been returned to light, reported by two bigger stones, a compluvium of rainwater, that diverts the water coming from a downhill stretch avoiding flooding.