Bolsena

Italy

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Bolsena, town, Lazio (Latium) regione, central Italy. It is situated on the northeast bank of Lake Bolsena (ancient Lacus Volsiniensis), just southwest of Orvieto. It occupies the site of the ancient Etruscan town of Volsinii (q.v.). After the latter was razed by the Romans in 265 bc, the inhabitants moved to another site, perhaps at modern Orvieto.

Bolsena is famous for the miracle of 1263, when a Bohemian priest, skeptical about the doctrine of transubstantiation (the conversion of the eucharistic bread and wine into the substance of the body and blood of Christ), was convinced of its truth by the miraculous appearance of drops of blood on the Host he was consecrating at mass on an altar in the crypt of the 11th-century Church of Santa Cristina. In the Vatican the marvel is commemorated by Raphael’s fresco “The Miracle at Bolsena” in the Stanza d’Eliodoro. In commemoration of the miracle, Pope Urban IV instituted the Feast of Corpus Christi (“Body of Christ”) and built Orvieto Cathedral, which houses the blood-stained altar cloth. The Church of Santa Cristina and the Chapel of the Miracle in the town’s catacombs contain statues by the 14th- and 15th-century Della Robbia family. The town has a 10th- and 13th-century castle and a small museum of Etruscan and Roman remains.

Market gardening, fishing, and wine and oil production are the principal economic activities. Pop. (2006 est.) mun., 4,163.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.

Viterbo

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Viterbo

Italy

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Viterbo, city, Lazio (Latium) region, central Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Cimini Mountains, northwest of Rome. Of Etruscan origin, the town was taken by the Romans about 310 bc. In 774 Viterbo was included among the Lombard towns of Tuscany, and it was given by Matilda of Tuscany to the pope in the 11th century. An independent commune and an episcopal see from 1193, Viterbo occasioned three centuries of disputes between the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire before it became a papal possession in 1396. Viterbo rivaled Rome as the papal residence after 1257, but it again declined in importance after the removal of the papacy to Avignon, Fr., in 1309.

Though almost 70 percent of the town was destroyed in World War II, it was one of the first towns in Italy to complete postwar reconstruction. Viterbo’s medieval quarter, enclosed by 11th- to 13th-century walls and towers, remains practically unchanged, with its Romanesque arcades and 13th- and 14th-century houses and palaces. Notable landmarks, besides the famous papal palace, include the 12th-century Cathedral of San Lorenzo and the 13th-century Church of San Francesco (each containing the tombs of two popes), the Renaissance town hall, and the 12th-century Church of Santa Maria della Verità, housing the Civic Museum. The body of St. Rose of Viterbo is preserved in the church named in her honour.

The city’s industries are primarily agricultural. Pop. (2006 est.) mun., 60,254.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.