By car
From the north
Take the motorway A1 FIRENZE-NAPOLI, exit immediately after the Roma-Nord toll at Fiano Romano and then follow SS4 Salaria, direction Rieti.

From the south
Take the motorway A1 NAPOLI-FIRENZE, at San Cesareo take the diversion to the motorway A1 FIRENZE-ROMA, direction Roma; leave the motorway at the Fiano Romano toll and then follow SS4 Salaria, direction Rieti.

By train:
It is possibile to use the train line FIUMICINO AEROPORTO-ROMA-ORTE, get off at the station of Passo Corese-Fara Sabina and take a blue-coloured COTRAL bus to Castelnuovo di Farfa. There is a train every twenty minutes.

For further information:
Servizio FS informa tel. (892021)da rete fissa.
http://www.trenitalia.it

Castelnuovo is set in one of the most beautiful areas of Sabina. It stands at the altitude of 358m on a green knoll, surrounded by hills covered with olive trees, fields and woods. A very important cultural and artistic destination, beautiful and charming Farfa Abbey, is situated only 2 km as the crow flies. Lovely villages of Fara Sabina, Poggio Mirteto, Salisano, Mompeo and Poggio Nativo are set on other surrounding hills. The medieval town centre of Castelnuovo is well preserved and rich in atmosphere: the municipality has taken care of the reconstruction of the paving and now the streets and alleys are embellished with original cobbles and bricks, while here and there beautiful flower jars, exposed and taken care by the inhabitants of Castelnuovo, give colour to the ancient stone walls.

The foundation of the first living area goes back to the first centuries a.C. when some eastern families that were converted to Christianity by Farfa monk Rainiero, settled in the area.
The Castle was founded between the 111th and 12th centuries and it seems that it had even nine towers. Starting from the 15th century it belonged to several noble families such as Orsini, Farnese and Barberini, although it nominally remained property of the Abbey.

In the area of the Municipality of Castelnuovo there are various archaeological sites: interesting findings dating back to the Bronze Age have been discovered in Grotta Oscura where there was probably a place of worship.
The area of Castelnuovo, which is very close to Farfa, was influenced for a long time by its geographical position. Its inhabitants built their houses around the current house of S. Donato, near which there used to be an important rustic villa dating back to the republican age. After the arrival of the Longobards the area passed under the control of a family with German origins and its heir donated the possessions to Farfa Abbey. The monks founded S.Donato?s church in that same place.
Castle of Agello was founded against the will of the monks near the church, but it doesn?t exist anymore. In reply the monks built a small castle around the church. It only lasted for a short time but the church maintained its role of a leading church for long. Recent archaeological research brought to light a modern graveyard inside the church.
There?s also another fortress in the area of Castelnuovo. Cavalleria was founded on a hill in the tenth century. Castelnuovo was founded between 1287 and 1312 and that caused changes in the distribution of the populations of Cavalleria, Agello and Quinzio in the area.

Palazzo Salustri Galli
This monumental palace is composed of two buildings that are linked by a covered passage. The southern building derives from the fusion of some medieval houses set around a small courtyard, while the northern building which is more united, is composed of a main body and two wings, which was built for service purposes. The latter building was realized by the noble family Simonetti during the second half of the 18th century, probably incorporating pre-existent structures.

S. Donato?s church
Some Farfa documents notify, starting from the ninth century, the presence of a church in the feud of S. Donato, given up to Farfa Abbey in 768. ?Castrum Sancti Donati?, destroyed around 1100, represents probably the primitive settlement of Castelnuovo. Between the 11th and 12th centuries the monks of Farfa constructed in the neighbourhoods another fortress with nine towers: ?Castrun Novum?.
The church, currently ruined and without its original roof, preserves traces of frescos in the lateral chapel and some architectural elements such as archs, capitals, jambs and a carved architrave dating back to the era of Roman Empire. ?? The exproprietated building, that has been recently restored by the municipality, is situated in a important historical-archaeological area where the British School is carrying out excavations.

The Oil museum of Sabina
This recently inaugurated museum is situated in the 16th century Palazzo Perelli and illustrates through an original route which winds through the town, the history of the olive oil of Sabina, known as one of the best in the world. Masters of the contemporary sculpture, among whom Alik Cavaliere, Maria Lai, Hidettoshi Nagasawa e Gianandrea Gazzola, have realized several installations in the museum. The hall dedicated to ?Memory? presents a photographic documentation accompanied by music selected by people of Castelnuovo. There?s a multimedia hall and the hall of ?Machines? that preserves ancient olive presses used in Sabina which document the evolution of production through four centuries of history. Furthermore there is a group of terracotta jars going back to the 17th century.

For further information:
Castelnuovo di Farfa (Rieti)
Palazzo Perelli, via Perelli tel. 0765-36370
Public property
Open: 15.30-20.00 Friday, 10.00-20.00 Saturday and Sunday, other days on request.
Admission: € 5,16 full fare, € 3,62 cut fare

Farfa Abbey
Farfa abbey?s origins are a mystery. Even the munk Gregorio da Catino, who reorganised and collected monastic documents between 11th and 12th century, confessed that, as a matter of fact, nobody knew anything precise about the origins and following happenings of the monastery, except that after the founder died, the area had been destroyed by Longobards and the Farfa site had been devastated. About a century later the abbey was rebuilt by a small maniple of munks, guided by Tommaso, who during a pilgrimage in the Holy Land had a vision of Madonna and was ordered by her to go to Sabina and rebuild the church that was dedicated to her and had been destroyed. Farfa?s location gave it a strong political connotation and as a consequence the influence increased inside the Italic territory to the point that the Longobards took the monastery under their protection. The becoming royal monastery brought luck to Farfa, which was inserted in the context of European renascence. Later on the braking of the Carolingian empire allowed the Hungarian incursions, and the monastery was occupied and set on fire during the first months of 898. The reconstruction was started in the beginning of the 10th century and revealed to be slow and difficult.

Regional oleoteca
The complex of Farfa Abbey, a place with an important symbolic value for the olive-growing in the region of Lazio, hosts the Regional oleoteca which represents the production of olive oil in all five provinces in Lazio. The oleoteca is indeed divided into five rooms, one for each province. Olive tree-made niches host bottles of olive oil that can be tasted and also bought. Pictures of Lazio and those related to all stages of manufacturing of this precious fruit, that is to say olive, are projected in the barrel vault of the room. This offers the visitors the possibility to immerse in the age-long memories, landscapes, colours, scents and flavours of culture and cultivation of olives in Lazio.

Among the places worth visiting there is the river Farfa, in which it is possible to swim in summer time and just admire the small lakes.
Furthermore it is possible to reach through an equipped path Grotta Scura, an important cavity from the speleological point of view, which is 150 m long and was formed by the erosive action of water during the Quaternary.

Although the local pasta dish of Castelnuovo called Fregnaccia is flavoured with sweet marjoram, the olive oil has always had a symbolic and sacred value in the local gastronomy. The fact that the museum of oil (Palazzo Perelli) is set in Castelnuovo, is certainly a confirmation of that. An important demonstration ?andar per olio e per cultura? is held on this subject in Farfa in the first days of December. During the demonstration the streets are full of stalls which offer samples of bread and just pressed olive oil.

Ristorante il Cantinone
Via Roma Est n° 5
tel. 0765-36283

Ristorante Sant?Anna
(venerdì pesce) sala banchetti
loc. Granica- via Mirtense
tel. 0765-36231
tel. 0765-36459

B&B Casa Nova
Loc. Casanova
tel. 0765-36436

Agriturismo La Nostra Fattoria
Via Mirtense km. 10
tel. 0765-36346

In Farfa, a village set near the Abbey with a few dozen habitants, small shops with wooden jamps giving onto the village, offer the possibility to buy sweets, honey, oil, linens for the house and other souvenirs.