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Augusta Bagiennorum

The excavated Roman grid-town of Augusta Bagiennorum on the Roncaglia plain near Bene Vagienna.

  • Cherasco
  • Archaeological site
Plan your visit
Where
Cherasco
Best for
Roman forum
Allow
1 hr 15 min

A Roman colonial town rises from the Roncaglia plain south of Turin, its forum, theater and amphitheater excavated on a scale that once needed no walls: Augusta Bagiennorum was founded as an orderly grid town under Augustus, replacing the Ligurian hill settlement of the Bagienni tribe nearby.

The amphitheater's oval, about 120 meters on its long axis, and a forty-meter theater stage still trace the outline of civic life, alongside a basilica, aqueduct and city gates flanked by towers. The town celebrated its symbolic bimillennium in 2000, and the site now sits inside a 243-hectare nature reserve established in 1993, protected as an archaeological area since 1933, with a modest but steady stream of visitors each year.

Four things worth finding

If you see nothing else, see these.

  1. The forum with basilica and temple podiumRoman, Augustan to 4th century AD

    Porticoes with shops run along the long sides, a three-aisled civil basilica closes one end, and a temple on a high podium the other.Center of the excavated area

  2. The theater and its quadriporticusRoman, 1st century AD

    A small early Christian basilica with three apses was later built on the podium of the temple in the middle of the courtyard.South-east of the forum

  3. The path along the decumanusRoman street plan

    The trail follows the line of the ancient main street, with traces of baths and houses on the way.Main path across the site

  4. The aqueduct and the country church of San PietroRoman aqueduct; rural church

    Stretches of the aqueduct lean against a small country church, a neat picture of layers of time.Edge of the site

Plan your visit

Everything you need before you go.

Booking
No booking needed
Time needed
1 hr 15 min
Best time
Spring or autumn mornings, when the reserve's grassland is at its greenest
Getting there
In the Roncaglia hamlet of Bene Vagienna, about 55 km south of Turin; a car is the practical way in, since the site sits outside the town center.

Combine the visit with Bene Vagienna's own small museum in town, which holds finds too fragile to leave on-site.

Official website
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Good to know

How long should you spend at Augusta Bagiennorum?

About an hour and a quarter is plenty for the forum, theater and the walk along the old main street. The site is spread across open grassland, so the time goes into walking rather than looking. Add time if you like birdwatching in the nature reserve around it.

Is Augusta Bagiennorum worth visiting?

Yes, if you like Roman towns you can have nearly to yourself. It is a quiet, hidden gem of Piedmont, with the ground plan of an Augustan grid town still readable in a nature reserve. It is not flashy, so come for the atmosphere.

Do you need a car to visit Augusta Bagiennorum?

Yes, in practice. The site lies in the Roncaglia area outside the center of Bene Vagienna, and there is no convenient public transport. Bring water and a hat, since there is little shade.

More to see nearby

Same city first, then the nearest across the region.

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