Sources of the Tiber

The Tiber, the river of Rome, rises in Romagna, on Monte Fumaiolo, at about 1,270 metres altitude, in the municipality of Verghereto. The source is located in a beech forest, at a point that until 1923 was in Tuscany and has since then been in the province of Forlì.

The monument was inaugurated on 15 August 1934: a marble column about five metres high with a bronze imperial eagle on top and at the base wolf heads, the inscription 'Qui nasce il fiume sacro ai destini di Roma'. Originally there were also fasces, removed after the war.

From the source the water flows down in a small stream which, after about 400 kilometres, crosses Rome and flows into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Next to the stele there is always someone filling their water bottle or having their photo taken with one foot on each bank of the newborn river.

You reach it on foot in 10-15 minutes through the woods, from the Fumaiolo pass (provincial road 43) or from the lower car park near Balze. In summer it is cool even on the hottest days; in winter there may be snow: suitable shoes and watch out for ice.