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Itri

Itri
Comune
Comune di Itri
Panorama of the Città alta of Itri, with the castle on the right.
Panorama of the Città alta of Itri, with the castle on the right.
Coat of arms of Itri
Coat of arms
Itri is located in Italy
Itri
Itri
Location of Itri in Italy
Coordinates: 41°17′N 13°32′E / 41.283°N 13.533°E / 41.283; 13.533
Country Italy
Region Lazio
Province / Metropolitan city Latina (LT)
Government
 • Mayor Antonio Fargiorgio
Area
 • Total 101 km2 (39 sq mi)
Elevation 170 m (560 ft)
Population (30 November 2015)
 • Total 10,679
 • Density 110/km2 (270/sq mi)
Demonym(s) Itrani
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 04020
Dialing code 0771
Patron saint Madonna della Civita
Saint day July 21
Website Official website

Itri is a small city and comune in the central Italian region of Latium and the Province of Latina.

Itri is an agricultural centre divided in two parts by a small river, the Pontone. It lies in a valley between the Monti Aurunci and the sea, not far from the Gulf of Gaeta. The more ancient part, with the Castle, was partly destroyed during World War II.

The Itrani speak a particular variant of the Neapolitan dialect, the Itrano.

The first direct documentary record of Itri dates to 914, but settlements in the neighbourhood existed from prehistoric times, as proved by findings from the Neolithic and the Bronze Ages.

According to legend, Itri's origins appear to coincide with the destruction of Amyclae, a maritime city founded by the twin sons of Zeus, Castor and Pollux, whose Spartan followers clashed with Aeneas. The Greek colony was most likely on the coast at about 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of Fondi. Amyclae was founded between Lake Fondi and the Terracina coast, on the edge of the murky waters of the swamps present at the time. The quiet Amyclaeans were plagued by the cursed and numerous evil forces of the swamp, unstoppable beings such as the monstrous serpent with nine heads, the Lernaean Hydra, which attacked with poisonous venom, and whose heads would re-grow as quickly as Hercules could slice them off with his sword. The city of Amyclae was soon annihilated. The few survivors abandoned the city and relocated a few kilometers south to the area now known as Itri. These first inhabitants of Itri supposedly adopted the emblems of the "Signum Salutis", a serpent, as their symbol of power, and "Amycleus", the dog's head, as their symbol of fidelity.


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