Cupramontana; visit to the historical center

The origins of Cupra Montana date back to the sixth and fifth centuries BC, and are named after a temple that stood there, dedicated to the goddess Cupra, a deity venerated by the Picenes for fertility and love. Originally, the Picenes were the ones who lived in these regions.Recalled by Pliny the Elder and Ptolemaios among the ancient cities of the Piceno, it was in the time of Augustine an important Roman municipality, called Cupramontana.Cupra Montana was not where we found it today, but it was placed where the municipal cemetery is now, at a lower altitude than the current one.The city was destroyed during the Greek-Gothic War and then abandoned, but the ruins were then used for the construction of a fortified site. Later, a short distance away, a castle was built on a higher place and it was named Massaccio (literally Massa Act) and in the seventh century the city became part of the Lombard Duchy of Spoleto.From the 13th century it became one of the 20 castles of Jesi, which then became the most important center.