Luna
- a city of Etruria, now Luni, Mel. 2, 4, 9; Plin. 3, 5, 8, § 50; Liv. 39, 21, 5; 43, 11; Mart. 13, 30, 1; Sil. 8, 482.— Hence,
- II Lūnensis or Lūniensis, e, adj., of or belonging to Luna: caseus Luniensis, remarkable for its size, Plin. 11, 42, 97, § 241; Mart. 13, 30 in lemm.: marmor, the modern marble of Carrara, Plin. 36, 6, 7, § 48: silex, id. 36, 18, 29, § 135: ara, an altar of marble of Luna, Suet. Ner. 50. —Plur. subst.: Lūnenses, ĭum, m., the inhabitants of Luna, Plin. 36, 5, 4, § 14.
LUNA(Λούνα, Strab. Λοῦνα, Ptol.: Σελήνης πόλις, Steph. B.: Eth. Lunensis: Luni), a city of Etruria, situated on the left bank of the Macra, a short distance from its mouth, and consequently on the very borders of Liguria. There is indeed considerable discrepancy among ancient authors as to whether it was an Etruscan or a Ligurian city; and it is probable that this arose not only from the circumstance of its position on the immediate frontier of the two countries, but from its having been successively occupied and held by both nations. Pliny calls it the first city of Etruria ;and Strabo begins to reckon the Etrurian coast from thence: Ptolemy also mentions it first in order among the cities of Etruria; while Mela, on the contrary, assigns it to the Ligurians. ( Luna Ligurum,Mel. 2.4.9; Strab. 5. p. 222; Plin. Nat. 3.5. s. 8; Ptol. 3.1.4.) From the time indeed when the Macra became the established limit between Liguria and Etruria, there could be no doubt as to Luna being geographically included within the latter country; but it is certain that when the Romans first came into collision with the Ligurians, that people was in possession of Luna and the surrounding territory, and indeed held the whole country from the Macra to the mouth of the Arnus. (Plb. 2.16; Liv. 34.56; 39.32, &c.) Livy, however, tells us that the territory of Luna, in which the Roman colony was founded, and which had been taken by them from the Ligurians, had previously belonged to the Etruscans (Liv. 41.13), and this seems to be the true explanation of the case. Both Luna and Luca, with the whole of the fertile and level country adjoining them at the foot of the Apennines, seem to have really belonged to the Etruscans during the height of their power, but had fallen into the hands of the Ligurians, before that people came into contact with Rome. We have, however, scarcely any account of Luna as an Etruscan city, no Etruscan remains have been found there, and there is certainly no foundation for the views of some modern writers who have supposed it to be one of the chief cities of Etruria, and one of the twelve that composed the League. (Dennis's Etruria, vol. 2. p. 79.)
The first historical mention of Luna itself (as distinguished from its more celebrated port) is that of its capture by the Romans under Domitius Calvinus (Frontin. Strat. 3.2.1); but the date of this event, which is not noticed by Livy, cannot be fixed with any approach to certainty. Hence, the first fact in its history of which we have any positive information, is the establishment there of a Roman colony in B.C. 177 (Liv. 41.13), if at least we are to adopt in that passage the reading of Lunamfor Lucam,which has been received by the latest editors of Livy. (Madvig, de Colon. p. 287.) Its territory is mentioned repeatedly in conjunction with that of Pisae, as having been laid waste by the neighbouring Ligurians. (Liv. 34.56, 41.19, 43.9.) It appears that the two districts adjoined one another, so that the Pisans, in B.C. 169, complained of the encroachments of the Roman colonists on their territory. (Id.45.13.) But, notwithstanding this colony, Luna seems not to have risen into any importance: Lucan indeed represents it as in a state of complete decay at the period of the Civil War (desertae moenia Lunae, Lucan (Luc. 1.586); and though it received a fresh colony under the Second Triumvirate, it was still in Strabo's time but a small and inconsiderable city. (Lib. Colon. p. 223; Strab. 5. p. 222.) No historical notice of it is found under the Roman Empire, but its continued existence down to the fifth century is attested by Pliny, Ptolemy, the Itineraries, and Rutilius, as well as by inscriptions found on the spot. (Plin. Nat. 3.5. s. 8; Ptol. 3.1.4; Itin. Ant. p. 293 ; Itin. Marit. p. 501; Rutil. Itin. 2.63--68.) We learn also that it was celebrated for its wine, which was reckoned the best in Etruria (Plin. xiv. s. 8.67), as well as for its cheeses, which were of vast size, some of them weighing as much as a thousand pounds. (Plin. Nat. 11.42. s. 97; Martial. 13.30.) But the chief celebrity of Luna in imperial times was derived from its quarries of white marble, the same now known as Carraramarble, and which was considered equal, if not superior in quality, to the finest Greek marbles. It is first mentioned as employed at Rome for building purposes in the time of Caesar, and from the age of Augustus onwards was very extensively employed, as may still be seen in the Pantheon, the Pyramid of Caius Cestius, &c. But it was speedily adopted for statuary purposes also, for which it was esteemed a finer material even than the Parian. (Plin. Nat. 36.5. s. 4, 6. s. 7; Strab. 5. p. 222; Sil. Ital.; Rutil. l. c.;Stat. Silv. 4.2. 29, 4. 23.) The buildings of Luna itself, and even. its walls, are said to have been constructed wholly of it, whence Rutilius calls then candentia moenia:and Cyriacus, an antiquarian of the 15th century, who visited the ruins of Luna, attests the same fact.
The period of the final decay of Luna is uncertain. It was taken and plundered by the Normans in 857, but was probably not destroyed ; and Dante, writing after 1300, speaks of Lunias a city that had sunk gradually into complete decay (Par.16.73); which was doubtless accelerated by the malaria, from which the neighbourhood now suffers severely. When it was visited by Cyriacus of Ancona, the ruins were still extensive and in good preservation ; but little now remains. Vestiges of an amphitheatre, of a semi-circular building which may have been a theatre, of a circus, and piscina, as well as fragments of columns, pedestals, &c., are still however visible. All these remains are certainly of Roman date, and no vestiges of Etruscan antiquity have been found on the spot. The ruins, which are obviously those of a small town, as it is called by Strabo, are situated about 4 m. S. of Sarzana, and little more than a mile from the sea. (Dennis's Etruria, vol. ii. pp. 78--84; Targioni-Tozzetti, Viaggia in Toscana, vol. x. pp. 403--466; Promis, Memorie della Città di Luna, 4to. Turin, 1838.)
Far more celebrated in ancient times than Luna itself was its port, or rather the magnificent gulf that was known by that name (PORTUS LUNAELiv., Plin., &c.; Σελήνης λιμήν, Strab.), now called the Gulf of Spezia. This is well described by Strabo as one of the largest and finest, harbours in the world, containing within itself many minor ports, and surrounded rounded by high mountains, with deep water close in to shore. (Strab. 5. p. 222; Sil. Ital..) He adds, that it was well adapted for a people that had so long possessed the dominion of the sea,--a remark that must refer to the Etruscans or Tyrrhenians in general, as we have no allusion to any naval supremacy of Luna in particular. The great advantages of this port, which is so spacious as to be capable of containing all the navies of Europe, seem to have early attracted the attention of the Romans ; and long before the subjection of the mountain tribes of Liguria was completed, they were accustomed to make the Lunae Portus the station or rendezvousof their fleets which were destined either for Spain or Sardinia. (Liv. 34.8, 39.21, 32.) It must have been on one of these occasions (probably in company with M. Cato) that it was visited by Ennius, who was much struck with it, and celebrated it in the opening of his Annals (Ennius, ap. Pers. Sat. 6.9.) At a later period it seems to have been resorted to also for its mild and delightful climate. (Pers. l.c.) No doubt can exist that the port of Luna is identical with the modern Gulf of Spezia;but it is certainly curious that it should have derived that name from the town or city of Luna, which was situated on the left bank of the Magra, at least five miles from the gulf, and separated from it, not only by the river Magra, but by a considerable range of rocky hills, which divide the Gulf of Speziafrom the valley of the Magra, so that the gulf is not even within sight of Luna itself. It is this range of hills which at their extremity form a promontory, called by Ptolemy, Lunae Promontorium (Σελήνης ἄκρον Ptol. 3.1.4.), now the Panta Bianca. It is true that Strabo places Luna on the rightbank of the Macra; but this is a mere mistake, as he is certainly speaking of the Roman town of Luna: it is possible that the Etruscan city of that name may not have occupied the same site with the Roman colony, but may have been situated on the right bank of the Macra, but even then it would have been at some distance from the port. Holstenius and some other writers have endeavoured to prove that the port of Luna was situated at the mouth of the Macra ; and it is probable that the town may have had a small port or landing-place at that point; but the celebrated Port of Luna, described by Strabo and extolled by Ennius, can certainly be no other than the Gulf of Spezia.
The Gulf of Speziais about 7 miles in depth by 3 in breadth: it contains within itself (as justly observed by Strabo) several minor ports, two of which are noticed by Ptolemy under the names of PORTUS VENERIS(Ἀφροδίτης λιμήν), still called Porto Venere, and situated near the western extremity of the gulf; and PORTUS ERICIS(Ἐρίκης κόλπος), now Lerici, on the E. shore of the gulf. The former name is found also in the Maritime Itinerary. (Ptol. 3.1.3; Itin. Marit. p. 502.)
[E.H.B]The goddess of the Moon. See Selene.
Now Luni; an Etruscan town, situated on the left bank of the Macra, about four miles from the coast, that once formed part of Liguria, but became the most northeasterly city of Etruria when Augustus extended the boundaries of the latter country as far as the Macra. It possessed a large and commodious harbour at the mouth of the river called Lunae Portus (Gulf of Spezzia). In B.C. 177 Luna was made a Roman colony. It was celebrated for its white marble, from the time of Iulius Caesar. The quarries now take their name from the neighbouring town of Carrara.
A Roman colony founded in 177 B.C. W of the Magra river and subsequently part of the Augustan Regio VII. Because of its position at the border between Liguria and Etruria, the city is variously cited by the sources. Portus Lunae has been placed in the gulf of La Spezia by some scholars and by others at the mouth of the Magra river. Passages from ancient sources (particularly Strab. 5.2.5) may be variously interpreted. There is no extant archaeological proof of an Etruscan Luna, even though Etruscan elements in the Ligurian border territory are naturally not excluded. In La Spezia, there is no archaeological evidence of a pre-Roman or Roman center prior to Luni where, on the contrary, in addition to the existence of the ancient city, the presence of a harbor pier, which has since disappeared because of coastal bradyseism, has been verified. Aerial photography has revealed the ancient coastline about 2 km inland from the modern shore. The founding of the colony assured the Romans of possession of the Ligurian coastal zone and guaranteed a base for military expeditions. The oldest epigraphic document from Luna is a dedicatory inscription to M. Acilius Glabrio, the conqueror of Antiochos at Thermopylai. A later dedicatory inscription appears on a statue base at Luni (CIL XI, 1339) to M. Claudius Marcellus, consul for the second time and conqueror of the Ligurians in 155 B.C. The city was part of the tribus Galeria and is always mentioned as a colonia. Augustus was responsible for a second settling of the colony (CIL XI, 1330).
The major source of the city's wealth came from the nearby marble quarries. The marble was loaded at Luni and exported widely throughout the Roman world. The quarries were originally a part of the colony of Luna, but by A.D. 27 they had become imperial property. Strabo notes that the Magra river transported to the city large trees that were excellent as construction beams. Luna shipped out the large Luna cheeses, mentioned by Pliny and by Martial, and the renowned Luna wine was considered by Pliny the best in Etruria. Numerous inscriptions give ample testimony to civil and religious offices, boards, and Roman and oriental cults throughout the Imperial period.
Activity did not cease with the fall of the W Roman Empire since the city remained outside the great invasion routes. Luna was the center (even more important than Genoa) of Italia Maritima, held by the Byzantines, and was the seat of Aldius the magister militum, and of a bishop who had administrative and political power in addition to religious authority. The city was to participate during the 7th and 8th c. in important councils (such as the one at Milan in 649) and represented, under Longobard sovereignty, the rights of the city, coined its own money, although of base alloy. With the Norman and Saracen invasions, with the gradual silting of the harbor, and above all with the spread of malaria, Luna fell and was abandoned.
Archaeological excavations were initiated during the reign of Carlo Alberto in 1837, but only in the last few years has large-scale scientific exploration been undertaken.
The city plan is square, irregular only on the E side toward the sea. The surrounding walls vary in structure: large masses of rock are followed by brickwork, belonging to different phases, but today covered over. The E gate has been partially excavated. The Via Aurelia, formerly the Aemilia Scauri, according to Strabo built by the censor Aemilius Scaurus in 109 B.C., probably over an already existing road, crosses the city and constitutes the decumanus maior. The cardo maximus, totally excavated, a major artery of communication with the harbor, stops in the central sector near a large square paved with large marble slabs. A public building in the square looks toward the forum, which is skirted by the Via Aurelia. In that area, near the ruins of the so-called Temple of Diana and the remains of a deposit of dolia defossa, a large hall has been discovered along with an area of fountains with rich architectural decorations and a monument with fragments of a large dedicatory inscription and a splendid marble portrait in relief of Au gustus wearing the crown of the city. A fine villa is being excavated here. The ruins of two large temples are visible. From the one near the N walls the recovery in 1842 of terracotta facade groupings and architectural decorations dating to the 2d c. B.C., suggested at the time that the building was the Capitolium. These terracottas are no longer considered Etruscan but neo-Attic, produced in the Roman milieu. The second temple is in the center between a portico which opens on the Via Aurelia and a short side of the forum along the axis of the cardo. The polygonal substructures of this temple remain; a few terracottas and bronzes buried with the inscription “Fulgur conditum” give evidence that the temple was struck by lightning. This building is now believed to be the Capitolium. It is set in a large, unified plan including the porticoed forum and the adjacent areas. The best documented artistic periods are the Augustan and the Julio-Claudian represented by the regular urban plan itself, by portraiture, by statuary, and by architectural decorations. Evidence from pottery and coins is quite ample during the whole period of the Empire.
The theater has been discovered in the NE corner. It is of modest dimensions and badly preserved. Beyond the walls is the large amphitheater. In the city, a house with mosaics has been uncovered and the remains of a basilica were partially excavated in the last century. From the basilica comes a series of bases with inscriptions of magistrates and emperors of the 3d c. and 4th c. A.D.
The archaeological finds are, for the most part, preserved in the Civic Museum at La Spezia, in the Archaeological Museum in Florence, at the Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara, and in the National Museum at Luni. However, much material has been scattered throughout Italy and other countries.
BIBLIOGRAPHYC. Promis, Dell'antica città di Luni e del suo stato presente (2d ed., 1857); G. Sforza, “Bibliografia storica della città di Luni e suoi dintorni,” Memorie Acc. Scienze 60 (1910); L. Banti, Luni (1937); R. U. Inglieri, NSc (1952) 20ff; M. Lopez Pegna, Luni, il golfo di Selene, la via Emilia di Scauro (1964); P. M. Conti, Luni nell'alto medioevo (1967); G. Schmiedt, Atlante degli insediamenti umani in Italia, II (1971) tav. 123; A. Frova, ed., Scavi di Luni (1973) MPI.
A. FROVA