Aquileia

A detail from a mosaic of fish in the sea from the basilica of Aquileia, Italy, dating from the 4th century AD. Wealthier Christian churches were the leaders in the creation of a late Roman art combining pagan motifs with Christian ones. In this mosaic, behind the traditional naturalistic content of a Nilotic scene, there is the Christian symbolism of fish and a fisherman. The basilica of Aquileia played a key role in the early conversion of a large region of Central Europe.

Ancient town in northeastern Italy, at the head of the Adriatic Sea. It was founded in 181 BC by the Romans, who were attracted both by its strategic position (it controlled routes across the Alps) and by the gold mines in the area. It became a colony of great military and commercial importance, and was known especially for its amber trade; it was also a centre of Mithraism. In AD 452 Attila destroyed the town and its inhabitants took refuge in the lagoons of Venice.

Known in the Middle Ages as Aglar, the town flourished as an archbishopric. In 1420 it came under Venetian rule, and from the early 16th century until 1918 was under Austrian rule. The town has extensive Roman and Romanesque remains.