Civitavecchia di Arpino

One of the most beautiful centers of the Ciociaria: the beauty and dignity of the urban environments and of the buildings, the care with which they are maintained, the importance and elegance of the buildings, the politeness with which the visitor is welcomed, they make evident the tradition of the city of great culture and prosperity. Home of important figures, from Caio Mario and Marco Tullio Cicerone, to the Cavalier d'Arpino, famous 18th century painter, up until today with the sculptor Umberto Mastroianni, the cousin of Marcello, great actor, and the musician Ennio Morricone.
The legend says that Saturn founded the original city, initially center of the Volsci, then the Samnites and conquered by the Romans around 300 B.C., the megalithic city wall of its Civitavecchia serves as proof of its old age.
Heavily tired by the changing occurrences of the Middle Ages, it began its recovery with the conquest of the Kingdom of Naples by the part of the Angiò, during the mid-13th century. It had strong economic and demographic expansion in the 17th and 18th centuries, in which it became the headquarters of many different manufacturing businesses for products that were diffused throughout Europe: wool products, especially those with the production of felter, stringed instruments, and printing. The tradition of Arpine as a center of study and culture was born and developed then and is still alive today
The central Piazza Municipio, called the living area of Arpino, rises on what was probably the Roman Forum; there flourishes Palazzo Boncompagni, where today is the headquarters for the Umberto Mastroianni Foundation, the 17th century stately buildings of Convitto Tulliano, with its colonnade, Palazzo del Municipio. In front of Palazzo Boncompagni is the church of San Michele, founded before 1000 perhaps on the remains of the Roman temple, with a 18th century façade, inside the works of Cavalier d'Arpino and a beautiful 16th century Crucifix on the table. Right next to San Michele and more then once restructured is the Church del Castello, which is structured in a polygonal tower.  
The museums are interestingi: Industrial Archaeological Museum of the Art of Wool; Museum of Master Lute-Makers;
Museum of the Art of Printing, e the Mastroianni Foundation, which houses collections of the great contemporary sculptor Umberto Mastroianni, native of Arpino and internationally well-known, around one hundred works among which sculptures in bronze and lead, bas-reliefs, drawings, tapestries, set design models, and a large part of the artist's personal collection.

The Civitavecchia di Arpino
Three kilometers from the city center, at 627 meters high, rises Civitavecchia di Arpino, reachable from Arpino either on foot or by car.
The megalithic wall that surrounded the citadel has about one kilometer remaining today, more or less one-third of the total. From the pointed Portal, even it is megalithic, of analogous construction to Porta Saracena di Segni, is accessed by the medieval town, today mostly restructured and used primarily for second houses.
A little more ahead we find another arched door, of a later era, beyond which is standing a tower with squared layout, erroneously called “di Cicerone”, remains of a medieval castle. The panorama of the roofs of Arpino is beautiful.