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Notice the craftsmanship of the milestone (marking the 68 Roman miles to the Imperial Capital) and depicting a gladiatorial battle with an inscription to the usurper-Emperor Flavius Magnentius. On the other side, on the so-called Via deiPilastri, are located the ancient tabernae with their original pavements, lead water ducts, and the counters and sinks of a wine bar. The enormous walls defending the city have also been very well preserved; they counted four entrances and extended for 3 km (1.86 mi) around the inhabited zones.
Remnants of the city’s theatre (on the Pettorine Hill, a natural buttress for Alba Fucens), evoke the image of a rich cultural life financed by the wealthy merchants of the day.
The subterranean zone, first explored by the Irish archaeologist Dodwell, reveals an efficient sewage system (the cloaca maxima) in polygonal masonry, a unique example in all of Italy that is the subject of study by both archaeologists and speleologists.
Of particular interest is the Church of San Pietro from the 12th Century, partially destroyed by the earthquake of 1915. Built on the city’s highest hill – above a pagan crypt making up the Temple of Apollo – the Christian church still preserves excellent sculpture work, such as the spiral columns of the iconostasis (the dividing wall usually used in Eastern churches) done in the Cosmatesque style. Greatly appreciated is the church’s apse, which on its exterior is decorated with theriomorphic motifs.