Fano Pu

The Roman colony of Fanum Fortunae took its name from a noted temple to the goddess of Fortune that once stood here. Still today Fortune reigns, but in the Christian guise of one of the town's four patrons, San Fortunato. In Roman times the place was both an important port and crossroad where the Via Flaminia from Rome met the main coastal route. Today it is an alluring small seaside resort that doubles as a busy fishing port with an attractive old centre. The Arco di Augusto, a splendid Roman triumphal arch (below), provides a fitting gateway to the town. It was erected in 2 AD under orders of the Roman Emperor Augustus as part of his ambitious project to smarten up the Empire's road network and marks the arrival of the Via Flaminia on the shores of the Adriatic; on the wall of the church on the right outside the...