Cerfennia, ancient city in Collarmele, Italy

Cerfennia was an ancient city in the land of the Marsi people, located near modern-day Collarmele at an elevation of about 850 meters (2,800 feet). The settlement stood three kilometers north of Marruvium, the Marsi capital, and was connected to other Roman towns such as Corfinium by the Via Valeria road.

Cerfennia was likely founded as a fortification or small settlement, possibly with religious significance tied to the pre-Roman Cerfi deities. By the Middle Ages, the name had changed to "Cerferno" in 12th-century documents, and a church dedicated to Saint Felicita was mentioned in connection with the area.

The name Cerfennia may derive from the cult of the Cerfi, deities of the pre-Roman Italic pantheon, as with Corfinium. The fortified centre was absorbed into the Roman municipium of Marruvium from the 1st century BC. In the 12th century the toponym survives as "Cerferno" in a bull of Pope Paschal II addressed to Berardo, bishop of the Marsi, mentioning the church of Santa Felicita.

The site lies near Collarmele, by the road crossing the Forca Caruso pass on the border between the Marsica and the Peligna valley. The church of S. Felicità in Cerfenna stands on the spot today. The terrain is open country, so plan for walking and bring water; the pass road is the main orientation point.

The 12th-century bull of Pope Paschal II addressed to Bishop Berardo of the Marsi still calls the place "Cerferno" and names a church of Santa Felicita there. That church, S. Felicità in Cerfenna, now stands on the site near Collarmele, so the ancient statio is traced through a papal document and a later church rather than through ruins.