Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography Volume II.djvu/1292

 1268 VELINUS. a marshy pool which still exists between the ruins of the ancient city and the mouth of the A lento. This river itself, however, was sufficient to afford a shelter and place of anchorage for shipping in ancient times (Cic. ad Att. xvi. 7), and is still resorted to for the same purpose by the light vessels of the country. No other ruins exist on the site of the ancient city except some masses of buildings, which, being in the reticulated style, are unquestionably of Roman date: portions of aqueducts, reservoirs for water, &c. are also visible. (The site and existing remains of Velia are described by Miinter, Velia in Lucanien, 8vo. Altona, 1818, pp. 15—20, and by the Due de Luvnes, in the Annali deW Instituto, 1829, pp. 381—386.) It is certain that as a Greek colony Velia never rose to a par with the more opulent and flourihhing cities of Magna Graecia. Its chief celebrity in an- cient times was derived from its celebrated school of philosophy, which was universally known as the Eleatic school. Its founder Xenophanes was indeed a native of Colophon, but had established himself at Velia, and wrote a long poem, in which he celebrated the foundation of that city. (Diog. Laert. ix. 2. § 20.) His distinguished successors Parmenides and Zeno were both of them born at Velia, and the same thing is asserted by some writers of Leucippus, the founder of the atomic theory, though others repre- sent him as a native of Abdera or Melos. Hence Diogenes Laertius terms Velia " an inconsiderable city, but capable of producing^reat men" (ix. 5. § 28). [E. H. B.] ■ COIN OF VELIA. VELINUS (^Velino), a considerable river of Central Italy, which has its sources in the lofty group of the Apennines between Nursia (^Norcia) and Interocrea (^Antrodoco). Its actual source is in the immediate neighbourhood of the ancient Falacrinum, the birthplace of Vespasian, wliere an old church still bears the name of Sta Maria di Fonte Velino. The upper part of its course is from N. to S. ; but near Ani7-oduco it turns abruptly to the W., pursues that direction as far as Rieti, and thence flows about NNW. till it discharges its waters into the Nar (A'era) about 3 miles above Terui (Interamna). Just before reaching that river it turms the celebrated cascade now known as the Falls of Terni or Cascata delle Marmore. This waterfall is in its present form wholly arti- ficial. It was first formed by M'. Curius Dentatus, who opened an artificial channel for the waters of the Velinus, and thus carried off a considerable part of the Lacus Velinus, which previously occu- pied a great part of the valley below Reate. There still remained, howi'ver, as there does to tliis day, a considerable hike, called the Lacus Velinus, and now known as the Logo di Pie di Lugo. It was on the banks of this lake that the villa of Axius, the friend of Cicero and Varro, was situated. (Cic. ad Att. iv. 15; Varro, R.R. ii. 1, 8.) Several smaller lakes still exist a little higher up the valley: hence we find Pliny speaking in the plural VELITRAE. of the Velini Lacus (Plin. iii. 12. s. 17; Tac, Ann. i. 79; Vib. Seq. p. 24.) The character and conformation of the lower valley of the Velinus are fully described in the article Reate. Pliny has made a complete confusion in his description of the Nar and Velinus. [Nar.] The latter river receives near Rieti two considerable streams, the Salto and the Tiirano: the ancient name of the first is unknown to us, but the second is probably the Ti.lenus of Ovid. {Fast. vi. 565.) It flows from the mountain district once occuiiied by the Aequi- cnli, and which still retains the name of Cicolano. [ToLENus.] [E. H. B.] VELITRAE {OviXnpai : Eth. OveiTpai>6s, Veliternus : Velletri), a city of Latium situated on the southern slope of the Alban hills, looking over the Pomptine Marshes, and on the left of the Via Appia. There can be no doubt that it was included within the limits of Latium, as that name was usually understood, at least in later times : but there is great uncertainty as to whether it was originally a Latin or a Volscian city. On the one hand Dionysius includes the Veliterni in his list of the thirty cities of the Latin League, a document probably derived from good authority (Dionys. v. 61). On the other hand both Dionysius himself and Livy represent Velitrae as a Volscian city at the earliest period when it came into collision with Rome. Thus Dionysius, in relating the wars of Ancus Marcius with the Volscians, speaks of Velitrae as a city of that people which was besieged by the Roman king, but sub- mitted, and was received to an alliance on favourable terms. (Id. iii. 41.) Again in B.C. 494, just about the period when its name figures in Dionysius as one of the Latin cities, it is mentioned both by that author and by Livy as a Volscian city, which was wrested from that people by the consul P. Virginius (Id. vi. 42 ; Liv. ii. 30). According to Livy a Ro- man colony was sent there the same year, which was again recruited with fresh colonists two years after- wards. (Liv. ii. 31, 34.) Dionysius, on the contraiy, makes no mention of the first colony, and represents that sent in b. c. 492 as designed to supply the ex- hausted population of Velitrae, which had been re- duced to a low state by a pestilence. (Dionys. vii. 13, 14.) It appears certain at all events that Veli- trae received a Roman colony at this period ; but it had apparently again fallen into decay, as it received a second body of colonists in b. c. 404. (Diod. xiv. 34.) Even this did not suffice to secure its alle- giance to Rome : shortly after the Gaulish war, the Roman colonists of Velitrae joined with the Volscians in their hostilities, and after a short time broke out into open revolt. (Liv. vi. 13, 21.) They were in- deed defeated in B.C. 381, together with the Prae- nestines and Volscians, who supported them, and their city was taken the next year (Jb. 22, 29); but their history from this time is a continued succession of outbreaks and hostile enterprises against Rome, al- ternating with intervals of dubious peace. It seems clear that they had really assumed the position of an independent city, like those of the neighbouring Volscians, and though the Romans are said to have more than once taken this city, they did not again restore it to the position of a Roman colony. Thus notwithstanding its capture in b. c. 380, the citizens were again in arms in 370, and not only ravaged the territories of the Latins in alliance with Rome, but even laid siege to Tusculum. They were quickly defeated in the field, and Velitrae itself in its turn was besieged by a Roman army ; but the siege