Stifone

Stifone is a small village on the Nera within the municipality of Narni. A Roman river port once served Narnia here; medieval mills, papal ironworks and hydroelectric stations later made use of the river.

Why it matters

Stifone lies where the Nera narrows between rocky slopes, below the outcrop carrying the castle of Taizzano. The municipal portal describes the village in relation to the river's emerald colours. The site connects the history of Roman river traffic, medieval milling and industrial use: in 1892 two hydroelectric power stations were built here and also supplied Narni with electricity. The regional tourism authority reports remains of a Roman-era shipyard south of the village, an identification that has been debated.

What to notice

The stone houses stand close to the water, with springs running through and beside the lanes. Near the entrance, the church of Santa Marina has a terracotta portal and bell gable. A spring by the grotto and the surviving wash-houses reflect the village's relationship with water. Above the roofs, Monte Croce holds remains of the monastery of San Giovanni, known as the Eremo di Santa Betta. No standing remains of the Roman port are visible; the landscape and later engineering works reveal the river's changing uses.

Context and history

Tacitus records that the party of Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso embarked at the port of Narnia on the journey to Rome in 19 AD. Burials and mosaics of the imperial period have been found in the area. The regional authority reports that shipyard remains, possibly dating to the First Punic War, were identified about nine hundred metres south of the village in 1969; the interpretation remains debated. The present village developed between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries under the Silori family, who housed farmers and artisans working for them. Water powered the area's mills, fulling mills and eighteenth-century papal ironworks before the hydroelectric stations were built in 1892.