Frascati | ||
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Comune | ||
Città di Frascati | ||
Cathedral of San Pietro Apostolo
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Location of Frascati in Italy | ||
Coordinates: 41°49′N 12°41′E / 41.817°N 12.683°ECoordinates: 41°49′N 12°41′E / 41.817°N 12.683°E | ||
Country | Italy | |
Region | Lazio | |
Province / Metropolitan city | Rome | |
Frazioni | Cisternole, Cocciano, Pantano Secco, Prataporci, Selvotta, Vermicino | |
Government | ||
• Mayor | Alessandro Spalletta (Democratic Party) | |
Area | ||
• Total | 22 km2 (8 sq mi) | |
Elevation | 320 m (1,050 ft) | |
Population (31 May 2015) | ||
• Total | 21,993 | |
• Density | 1,000/km2 (2,600/sq mi) | |
Demonym(s) | Frascatani | |
Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |
• Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
Postal code | 00044 | |
Dialing code | 06 | |
Patron saint | Saints Apostles Philip and James | |
Saint day | May 3 | |
Website | Official website |
Frascati (pronounced [fɾaˈskaːti]) is a town and comune in the Metropolitan City of Rome in the Lazio region of central Italy. It is located 20 kilometres (12 mi) south-east of Rome, on the Alban Hills close to the ancient city of Tusculum. Frascati is closely associated with science, being the location of several international scientific laboratories.
Frascati produces the white wine with the same name. It is also a historical and artistic centre.
The most important archeological finding in the area, dating back to Ancient Roman times, during the late Republican Age, is a patrician Roman villa probably belonging to Lucullus. In the first century AD its owner was Gaius Sallustius Crispus Passienus, who married Agrippina the Younger, mother of Nero. His properties were later confiscated by the Flavian imperial dynasty (69–96 AD). Consul Flavius Clemens lived in the villa with his wife Domitilla during the rule of Domitian.
According to the Liber Pontificalis, in the 9th century Frascati was a little village, probably founded two centuries earlier. The name of the city probably comes from a typical local tradition of collecting firewood ("frasche" in Italian)—many place-names around the town refer to trees or wood. After the destruction of nearby Tusculum in 1191, the town's population increased and the bishopric moved from Tusculum to Frascati. Pope Innocent III endorsed the city as a feudal possession of the basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano, but in the following centuries its territories were ravaged by frequent raids that impoverished it. It was owned by various baronial families, including the Colonna, until, in 1460, Pope Pius II fortified the city with walls.