Frescoes in the crypt of Duomo of Anagni

ANAGNI is a sleepy little town about an hours drive south of Rome that is known for its history tightly tied to the papacy. It appears medieval, but the town is actually much older evidenced by archeological artifacts found in the area that trace its origins to the pre-roman era in 306 B.C. when the Roman legions expanding in the South conquered this territories creating a Municipius Romanus.

Nonetheless, the hay days of Anagni were in the Middle Ages when four popes, 2 from the Conti Segni and 2 from the Cetani families, (the two most powerful families in town), were born here. Innocenzo III, Gregorio IX, Alessandro VI and Bonifacio VIII, moved the Holy Seat to this small town. Each of the four popes tried hard to embellish this new city, but Gregorio IX gets the most credit for building a new road, the Via Anagnina that still today, connects the city to Rome.

The winner of Anagni’s popularity contest goes to Bonifacio VIII, more for the famous “slap di Anagni” an unconfirmed historical episode that happened at the beginning of the 1300s, when the pope decided to excommunicate the French King Filippo il Bello. Philippe le Belle sent two of his ambassadors to Anagni to speak with the pope about rescinding the excommunication, but the meeting ended up with the pope arrested after getting slapped in the face. There aren’t any historical witnesses to the happening and many historians think that the “slap” was more moral than physical. However, Dante Alighieri in his famous Divine Comedy narrates this episode, so there are some who believe the Pope was actually slapped. Incidentally, Bonifacio died later in October of the same year.

There are lovely frescoes to be viewed on the ceiling of the crypt where the remains of its patron saint, San Magno are located under the pavement of the Santa Maria Assunta Basilica, one of the finest in the Lazio region. This Basilica gives Anagni the nickname: the town with the mini Sistine Chapel. It is indeed an extraordinary work of art, well preserved, with vivid colors, that tell remarkable stories of the old and new testaments. I strongly recommend a visit to this site to those of you interested in history and art.

The other jewels of Anagni are the “palazzo Bonifacio” that Pope Bonifacio built to be used as his residence and the Palazzo Comunale or City Hall building.

Anagni is easily reachable by car with the A1 or Autostrada Roma-Napoli, by train and bus service. Lodging is available in the nearby town of Fiuggi, a well known spa town; several hotels, for all budgets, are available. In addition to the hotels there are many little restaurants that feature the true Cucina Cioaciara that offers a wide variety of pastas, meats and cheeses. Wines also need to be mentioned, they are good and inexpensive. (I’ll talk more about them in another blog) To be noted are: Passerina del Frusitane white and Cesanese del Piglio, the two most popular and the best to match the substantial local cuisine.

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