If you’re thinking that Cottanello is just one of the numerous small villages that are scattered in the Sabina region, well think again! Cottanello has, in fact, numerous small realities which put together make it quite unique.
The village of Cottanello is entirely pedestrianized and this characteristic will allow you to visit it in complete tranquillity, strolling along the patrol path, or rather the space between the two town walls. Some towers still survive today, which you can find walking around the town and that also correspond to the town’s entry gates.
The door to the south is also called Porta Romana (Roman gate), so called because it looks towards Rome. This was the old main entrance, judging from the fact that three defensive coats of arms are visible on it. The northern gate is also called the Porta del Regno (Kingdom gate), so called because it looked towards the Kingdom of Naples.
The Cottanello marble quarry
The name Cottanello is linked to the Cottanello marble, a pink stone that was used between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries by Bernini and Borromini in many churches throughout Rome. Cottanello’s red marble was also used for the Colonnade in Saint Peter’s square. A great pride for Sabina!
The marble quarry, which can still be visited independently, is located roughly one km from the town, following the road that leads to the Prati di Cottanello (meadows). Apparently the quarry was up and running until 1970. There are visible traces of excavation using pickaxes inside, dating back to the oldest age of exploitation of the area, alongside more recent traces of excavation with drills. You will notice what should have become the shaft of a column, only partly sketched and still partially to be carved.
Since February 2018, the red marble of Cottanello has been declared a Natural Monument, along with the Hermitage of San Cataldo which we will discuss shortly.
The Roman villa of Cottanello
The Cottanello marble was also used in the Roman villa located in the territory of the Sabino village, in Collesecco. The Roman villa of Cottanello forms part of the typical rustic Sabine villas that we can also find in the Forum Novum territory, in Vescovio.
The villa no doubt must have had a productive function, focused in particular on the cultivation of vines and olive trees for the production of wine and the renowned Sabine olive oil. The products then ended up in Rome, transported by river navigation on the Tiber or via the Via Salaria.
What was this particular function of the Cottanello Roman villa? During the excavation campaigns, the first of which dates back to the late 1960s, fragments of large vases bearing the MCOTTAE stamp were found. The villa must therefore have belonged to the Roman family of the Aurelii Cottae, from which the etymology of the name Cottanello seemingly also derives.
Walking through the structure, during the days it is open to the public, will allow you to admire the splendid mosaics that decorated the floors, which, even in this case, it is impossible to establish a clear overview. It is of great artistic value and some of these mosaic works house tiles made of glass paste, along with the red marble of Cottanello.
The “Pratoni” di Cottanello (meadows)
Emblem of the pastoral world of Sabina, the so-called “Pratoni” di Cottanello are divided into the Meadows on top and the Meadows below. Le “Casette” is the small high-altitude village, 800 metres above sea level. A village that still demonstrates this area’s vocation which is dedicated to farming. Climbing up towards the village you will find yourself in front of small herds of animals lazily grazing, a bucolic scene, almost from other times.
Le Casette (small houses) were used by local farmers when the livestock was transferred in transhumance to graze in the Pratoni, not only as a home but also as a shelter for the animals. Even today, in this area, at the beginning of May, the transhumance is celebrated in conjunction with the actual transfer of livestock to the mountains for the summer.
Currently, only a small part of the village is in use and unfortunately it is not in good condition, but it remains an important testimony of how much the Sabina is still linked to rural activities.
