Crowne Plaza - Stabiae Sorrento Coast Hotel

Castellammare di Stabia besides being a spa town is also a city of sea, art, archeology and sports. Placed in a charming panoramic position, its amphitheater shape faces the sea of the Parthenopean Gulf where its southern shore rises the Sorrento peninsula. The warm climate, the healthy air, the fertile fields, the stunning natural scenery, the variety of sources, the wide beaches, the magnificent walks on its hills and mountains, the richness of archaeological and artistic heritage is so extraordinarily mixed to be all along the seductive appeal of the city. "City of Waters " is famous since ancient times for the presence of 28 natural springs of mineral water, all different in composition and therapeutic value, that streamed spontaneously from Faito Mount, gave birth to two Baths.

History

Castellammare di Stabia lies next to the ancient Roman city of Stabiae, which was destroyed by the Vesuvio eruption in AD 79. The castle the city takes its name from was erected in around the 9th century on a hill commanding the southern side of the Gulf of Naples. It was restored during the reign of Frederick II of Hohenstaufen and enlarged by King Charles I of Anjou.
The comune, previously called Castellamare, assumed the name Castellammare on January 22, 1863, and the current name on May 31, 1912.


Waters

The waters flows from 28 springs, and, as they are of different chemical composition, are a therapeutic support for many diseases.

Archaeological ruins

The archaeological remains of Stabiae were originally discovered in 1749 by Cavaliere Rocco de Alcubierre, who was an engineer working for the Bourbon king. These ruins were partially excavated by Alcubierre with help from Karl Weber between 1749-1782. The ruins that had been excavated, however, were reburied and their location was forgotten until 1950, when a high school principal rediscovered them. The remains of both an Oscan settlement (oppidum) and the later Roman town were discovered.
The most famous of the findings at Stabiae are the villas that come from the time between the destruction of Stabiae by Sulla in 89 B.C. and the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. As described above, Stabiae became a resort town during this time and was particularly favored for its view of the Bay of Naples and the surrounding mountains. Stabiae was also well known for the quality of its spring water, which was believed to have medicinal properties. The ideal placement and qualities of this location caused many wealthy Romans to build luxurious villas on the ridge overlooking the bay. These villas, which are described below, provide us with some of the most stunning architectural and artistic remains of Roman villas. 2004 saw an Italian American collaboration between the Superintendency of Archaeolgy of Pompei, the region of Campania and the University of Maryland to form the non profit Archaeological entity, the Restoring Ancient Stabiae Foundation (RAS). It is the RAS Foundation prime goal to excavate, restore and build an archaeological park at the ancient site of Stabiae, a complex of seven or eight Roman villas according to recent geophysical surveys conducted by the University of Birmingham.
A large number of artifacts come from Stabiae are preserved in the Naples National Archaeological Museum.
Among the many villas found at Stabiae, the most famous are Villa San Marco, Villa Del Pastore, and Villa Ariana.
Villa San Marco is one of the largest villas ever discovered in Campania, measuring more than 11,000 square metres.
Villa Del Pastore means “Villa of the Shepherd” in Italian. This villa gets its name from a small statue of a shepherd that was discovered at this site (images of this statue can be seen at the stabiae.org website). This villa measures even larger than Villa San Marco, coming in at 19,000 square metres. This Villa was rediscovered in 1967. Villa Arianna gets its name from the fresco depicting Dionysus saving Ariadne from a desert island. This villa is particularly famous for its frescoes, many of which depict light, winged figures. It is difficult to get a clear sense of this villa, however, because it grew over the course of 150 years. This villa has one of the largest courtyards of any Roman villa, which measures two stadium lengths. Another interesting feature of Villa Arianna is its private tunnel system that connects its location on the ridge to the sea shore, which was probably only between 100-200 metres away from the bottom of the hill. The shoreline has since changed, making the archaeological site further inland than it was in antiquity.