Ancona

Ancona — Ancona (Italy), Pleiades 413014

Ancōna, æ, v. Ancon 2.

ANCONA

ANCO´NA or ANCON (Ἀγκών: Eth. Ἀγκώνιος, and Ἀγκωνίτης, Steph. B., Anconitanus: the form Ancon in Latin is chiefly poetical; but, according to Orelli, Cicero uses Anconem for the ace. case), an important city of Picenum on the Adriatic sea, still called Ancona. It was situated on a promontory which forms a remarkable curve or elbow, so as to protect, and almost enclose its port, from which circumstance it derived its Greek name of Ἀγκών, the elbow. (Strab. 5. p. 241; Mela, 2.4; Procop. B. G. 2.13. p. 197.) Pliny, indeed, appears to regard it as named from its position at the angle or elbow formed by the coast line at this point (in ipso flectentis se orae cubito, 3.13. s. 18), but this is probably erroneous. The promontory on which the city itself is situated, is connected with a more lofty mountain mass forming a bold headland, the CUMERUS of Pliny, still known as Monte Comero. Ancona was the only Greek colony on this part of the coast of Italy, having been founded about 380 B.C. by Syracusan exiles, who fled hither to avoid the tyranny of the elder Dionysius. (Strab. l. c.) Hence it is called Dorica Ancon by Juvenal (4.40), and is mentioned by Scylax ( § 17, p. 6), who notices only Greek cities. We have no account of its existence at an earlier period, for though Pliny refers its foundation to the Siculi (l. c.; see also Solin. 2.10), this is probably a mere misconception of the fact that it was a colony from Sicily. We learn nothing of its early history: but it appears to have rapidly risen into a place of importance, owing to the excellence of its port (the only natural harbour along this line of coast) and the great fertility of the adjoining country. (Strab. l. c.;Plin. Nat. 14.6.) It was noted also for its purple dye, which, according to Silius Italicus (Sil. Ital. 8.438), was not inferior to those of Phoenicia or Africa. The period at which it became subject to the Romans is uncertain, but it probably followed the fate of the rest of Picenum: in B.C. 178 we find them making use of it as a naval station against the Illyrians and Istrians. (Liv. 41.1.) On the outbreak of the Civil War it was occupied by Caesar as a place of importance, immediately after he had passed the Rubicon; and we find it in later times serving as the principal port for communication with the opposite coast of Dalmatia. (Caes. B.C. 1.11; Cic. ad Att. 7.1. 1, ad Farn. 16.12; Tac. Ann. 3.9.) As early as the time of C. Gracchus a part of its territory appears to have been assigned to Roman colonists; and subsequently Antony established there two legions of veterans which had served under J. Caesar. It probably first acquired at this time the rank of a Roman colony, which we find it enjoying in the time of Pliny, and which is commemorated in several extant inscriptions. (App. BC 5.23; Lib. Colon. pp. 225, 227, 253; Gruter, pp. 451. 3, 465. 6; Zumpt, de Colon. p. 333.) It received great benefits from Trajan, who improved its port by the construction of a new mole, which still remains in good preservation. On it was erected, in honour of the emperor, a triumphal arch, built entirely of white marble, which, both from its perfect preservation and the lightness and elegance of its architecture, is generally regarded as one of the most beautiful monuments of its class remaining in Italy. Some remains of an amphitheatre may also be traced; and numerous inscriptions attest the flourishing condition of Ancona under the Roman Empire. The temple of Venus, celebrated both by Juvenal and Catullus (Juven. 4.40; Catull. 36.13), has altogether disappeared; but it in all probability occupied the same site as the modern cathedral, on the summit of the lofty hill that commands the whole city and constitutes the remarkable headland from which it derives its name.

We find Ancona playing an important part during the contests of Belisarius and Narses with the Goths in Italy. (Procop. B. G. 2.11, 13, 3.30, 4.23.) It afterwards became one of the chief cities of the Exarchate of Ravenna, and continued throughout the Middle Ages, as it does at the present day, to be one of the most flourishing and commercial cities of central Italy.

The annexed coin of .Ancona belongs to the period of the Greek colony: it bears on the obverse the head of Venus, the tutelary deity of the city, on the reverse a bent arm or elbow, in allusion to its name. COIN OF ANCONA.

[E.H.B]

Ancōna

or Ancon (Ἀγκών). A town in Picenum, on the Adriatic Sea, lying in a bend of the coast between two promontories, and hence called Ancon, or an “elbow.” It was built by the Syracusans in the time of the elder Dionysius, B.C. 392. The Romans made it a colony. It possessed an excellent harbour, completed by Trajan, and was one of the most important seaports of the Adriatic.

ANCONA Marche, Italy.

The most important port in Picenum, founded by Syracusans in 387 B.C. on the site of important Picene and Villanovan settlements, and the only Greek colony in this part of Italy. The city stands on a promontory, the easternmost spur of Monte Conero (in. Cunerus), in an arc around an excellent natural harbor artificially improved. The city was taken over by the Romans ca. 268 B.C.; after Philippi and Actium there were deductions of colonists, and the city was inscribed in the tribus Leinonia. It had a flourishing Mediterranean commerce under the Republic and became under the Empire the principal port of Roman traffic with Dalinatia. Trajan undertook improvement of the harbor, notably a new mole, to which an arch bears witness. The city was ultimately destroyed by the Goths after a long struggle.

The most important remains are those of the elegant arch of Trajan of Hymettos marble (A.D. 115), light and graceful in design. Its inscription (CIL IX, 5894) is preserved and the original stair descending to the seashore. There are also well-preserved remains of an amphitheater, and substructions of a Greek temple lie under the cathedral in a situation that commanded a panoramic view. This was presumably dedicated to Aphrodite (Catull. 36.13; Juvenal 4.40). The fortifications of the acropolis and the walls of the town on the sea side can be traced with gaps and uncertainties; various ancient buildings, especially horrea in the vicinity of the port and houses higher in the city, have come to light from time to time; and Picene, Hellenistic, and Roman necropoleis have been located and explored.

Antiquities from the province have been assembled in the Museo Nazionale delle Marche. The most important materials are the numerous tomb groups, ranging from Picene graves of the 9th c. down to the Roman period, and including the tombs of Fabriano.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

M. Moretti, Ancona, Reale Istituto di Studi Romani (1945) MPI; BPI 10 (1956) 237-62 (D. Lollini) PI; AA 74 (1959) 173-78 (B. Andreae); ibid. 85 (1970) 312 (H. Blanck); Atti del Convengo sui Centri Storici delle Marche (1968) 221-51MI.

L. RICHARDSON, JR.