In the heart of the Vulture Region in the north of Basilcata is Venosa, a town littered with important archeological finds dating back to the Roman era and the birthplace of Horace (65-8 BC), one of the greatest classical poets ever. Venosa is also member of the Club of "The Most Beautiful Villages in Italy" and known for the famous DOC wine Aglianico.

Sightseeing:

• The Aragonese castle, built in 1470 by Pirro del Balzo Orsini. It has a square plan with four cylindrical towers. The shining sun, the del Balzo coat of arms, is visible on the western towers. It was turned into a residence by Carlo and Emanuele Gesualdo, who added also an internal loggia, the north-western wing and bastions used as prisons. From 1612 it was the seat of the Accademia dei Rinascenti. It is now home to the National Museum of Venosa, inaugurated in 1991, with ancient Roman and other findings up to the 9th century AD. The entrance is preceded by a fountain conceded by King Charles I of Anjou.


• Many fragments of Roman workmanship are built into the walls of the cathedral, which is due to Pirro del Balzo also (c. 1470).


• The abbey church of SS. Trinità is historically interesting; it was consecrated in 1059 by Pope Nicholas II and passed into the hands of the Knights of Saint John in the time of Boniface VIII (1295-1303). In the central aisle is the tomb of Alberada, the first wife of Robert Guiscard and mother of Bohemund. An inscription on the wall commemorates the great Norman brothers William Iron Arm, Drogo, Humfrey and Robert Guiscard. The bones of these brothers rest together in a simple stone sarcophagus opposite the tomb of Alberada. The church also contains some 14th-century frescoes. Behind it is a larger church, which was begun for the Benedictines about 1150, from the designs of a French architect, in imitation of the Cluniac church at Paray-le-Monial, but never carried beyond the spring of the vaulting. The ancient amphitheatre adjacent furnished the materials for its walls.


• Baroque Church of the Purgatory (or San Filippo Neri)
  


• The Archaeological Area of Notarchirico, in the communal territory. It comprises a Palaeolithic with 11 layers dating from 600,000 to 300,000 years ago. Remains of ancient wildlife, including extinct species of elephants, bisons and rhinos have been found, as well as a fragment of a femur of Homo erectus.

Remains of the ancient city walls and of an amphitheatre still exist, and a number of inscriptions have been found there. Jewish catacombs with inscriptions in Hebrew, Greek and Latin show the importance of the Jewish population here in the 4th and 5th centuries after Christ.

On the doorstep:

Venosa is in the heart of the Vulture Region; a fertile area that takes the name from the Vulture volcano, now extinct, and where the lakes of Monticchio can be found.

Wines of the region:

It is due to the fertility of the land that Aglianico del Vulture is consistently recognised as one of the best Italian wines. Horace himself sang the praises of this red wine: “savoured by the mind and drunk by the heart,” said the poet, “giving comfort and joy to life”. Wine tasting is possible in the area.

Venosa was known as Venusia in Roman times and it is widely accepted that the city was founded in honour of Venus, the goddess of love. Others attribute its origin to the village’s abundant and delicious wines (vinosa), to its many “veins” of water, or even the town’s windy climate (ventoso).

In the hot summer months there is also the new water park of Venosa, to enjoy.

LE ONDE VENOSAPARK, Contrada Vignali - 85029 VENOSA (PZ) www.venosapark.it.

To eat:

Ristorante ll Grifo: Via delle Fornaci, 21 Agriturismo La Maddalena: Contrada La Maddalena

Distance and directions (from Irsina):

60 kms (40 mins). Exit Irsina form the north (new part of the town), follow signs down the hill for Matera and join SS96. Turn right towards Bari/Matera and then left for Spinazzola/autostrada. Exit for Spinazzola and follow signs to town until you reach a T-junction. Turn left for Foggia. After 3 kms, take 1st slope to right and follow signs for Venosa.