Tivoli, Historic town in Lazio, Italy.
Tivoli is a town in the Metropolitan City of Rome, located about thirty kilometers northeast of the capital on the western slopes of the Sabine Hills above the Aniene River. Streets climb from the river valley up to medieval lanes and Renaissance villas scattered among olive groves and quarries.
The settlement was founded in the thirteenth century before Christ under the name Tibur and later developed into a retreat for wealthy Romans. During the Middle Ages fortresses and churches appeared, while papal authority had the Rocca Pia built in 1461.
Roman emperor Hadrian built his sprawling summer retreat here with gardens and pavilions that imitate Greek and Egyptian architecture. Today these remains and the Renaissance gardens of Villa d'Este attract visitors who walk among water features and old walls.
Trains from Roma Termini reach the town in about forty-five minutes, with departures roughly every hour throughout the day. Walking between the main sites requires comfortable shoes because streets climb steeply from the valley floor to the higher quarters.
Quarries near the town still extract travertine, the pale stone that formed much of ancient Rome and continues to supply builders today. The same rock appears in local buildings, bridges and walls, linking modern construction to methods used over two thousand years ago.
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