Abano Terme, Italy

Abano Terme Italy

Abano Terme (known as Abano Bagni until 1924) is a town and comune in the province of Padua, in the Veneto region of Italy, on the eastern slope of the Euganean Hills, about 10 kilometres (6 miles) southwest of Padua by rail. As of 2001, Abano Terme has a population of 19,062 (it had only 4,556 inhabitants in 1901). The town’s main economic resource is its hot springs and mud baths, with spring waters at a temperature of around 80 °C (176 °F). The baths were known to the Romans as Aponi fons or Aquae Patavinae. They are described in a letter from Cassiodorus to Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths. Some remains of the ancient baths have been found (S. Mandruzzato, Trattato dei Bagni d’Abano, Padua, 1789). An oracle of Geryon was located nearby, and the so‑called sortes Praenestinae (C.I.L. i., Berlin, 1863; 1438–1454), small inscribed bronze cylinders used for divination, were perhaps discovered here in the 16th century. The baths were destroyed by the Lombards in the 6th century, but were rebuilt and expanded when Abano became an autonomous comune in the 12th century and again in the late 14th century. The town was under the rule of the Republic of Venice from 1405 to 1797.
Recommended airport
Venezia Tessera (VCE)
Points of interest
Nearby destinations
  • Venice a 42.16 km
  • Padua a 8.88 km
  • Rovigo a 31.93 km