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| The Appian Way |
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| The Appian Way from Rome to Brindisi |
The Appian Way was called by the ancient romans regina viarum, the queen of the roads. It is certainly the most important ancient road whose ruins survived till today and it connected Rome with Brindisi in the south of Italy, a strategic harbour linking Italy to Greece and the Middle East. The construction of the Appian Way was started by the censor Appio Claudio Cieco (who gave the name to the road) in 312 B.C. The road, differently to all the previous ones realised, was entirely paved and polished. This way the road could be used with no issues also under the rain. It was 4,1 meters wide, which allowed to cross it both ways at the same time. At the sides of it there were sidewalks, exactly like we see today at the sides of the modern roads or streets. During the middle age the road has been used by the crusaders to reach Palestine to free Jerusalem from the arabs. A curiosity is about Spartacus: he was a slave who, together with other 6,000 slaves, started a revolt against Rome. After he was killed all his companions were crucified along the Appian Way from Rome to Pompei. He must have been a quite shocking view!
