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| ETRURIA LAZIALE INCOMING |
In SANTA SEVERA, the magnificent Castle stands on the site mentioned by the greek name Pyrgoi, that means “Towers”, or Pyrgi. Pyrgi was the main port of Etruscan Cerveteri and one of the most important trading ports in the Mediterranean at that time. The castle is defined by the ancient literature as “port” of Caesar, as a “city” and as a “metropolis” of the Tyrrhenian pirates by the late commentators of Virgil's Aeneid. Inside, among the various homes, it houses the Museum of Ancient Sea and Navigation, which has a number of models and interesting and very impressive reproductions. Interesting to see are the archaeological excavations of the sacred area which have unearthed the remainings of two temples and many important findings, including the famous “Gold Leaves” with bilingual inscriptions in Etruscan and Punic.
The Macchiatonda Regional Nature Reserve spreads over 250 hectares of coastal plain 50 km north of Rome at the meeting point of Tolfa Hills and Ceriti Hills. This fragile ecosystem is one of the first places where it has been experimented successfully with environmental restoration. The Macchiatonda Regional Nature Reserve is well known to birdwatchers because there are many species observed during the year; between wintering can be observed, the wild geese, the bittern, the widgeon, the shoveler, the garganey; all year round are nesting the mallards, moorhen, the coot, the bittern, the little grebe. Present and non-breeding are gulls, herons, bittern.
The Visitor Center is located inside the Santa Severa Castle.
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