Cultural Tours and Excursions in Italy: Aquileia

"Aquileia omnium sub occidente urbium maxima" ("Aquileia, the greatest of all the towns in the West"). That is how the Byzantine emperor Justinian described the town in the sixth century and, though he perhaps was exaggerating a little, Aquileia

could once boast to be the ninth largest city in the Roman Empire, fourth in Italy. As the capital of Regio X (the Tenth Roman Region), it was for centuries the seat of the Roman governor as well as the home of the Northern Adriatic Fleet. In the first century AD, the Roman historian and geographer Strabo described it as a "bustling trading center for Mediterranean and transalpine countries." In recognition of its impressive ruins and its important place in Roman history, Aquileia is considered a World Heritage site by the United Nations.

And in light of its significant role in early Christian history, when it was for thirteen centuries the seat of a Christian Patriarch, it was proclaimed by the Vatican City as one of the five official Jubilee cities in Italy. The city preserves both Roman and early Christian ruins, including the Roman port and forum, remains of Roman public baths and private houses with beautifully preserved mosaic floors,

Roman roads with visible chariot tracks, a Roman burial ground, and the ancient Patriarchal Basilica preserving both the largest known Paleo-Christian polychrome mosaic floor in Western Europe (early fourth century), and a ninth century crypt adorned with thirteenth century frescos. The excursion includes transportation, a guided tour of the various sites by an ancient historian in both Italian and English, and entrance to the museums, the church foundations and the frescoed church crypt. This excursion is typically offered on a Saturday morning.

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