| This convent was built during the Middle
Ages, on the Roman ruins along the path of the ancient Via Sacra.
From the square in front of it, it is possible to admire one of
the most wonderful panoramas of the Castelli Romani, as it towers
over the lake Albano.
Its name is a clear indication that in a previous period there
was a Roman construction, and as a matter of fact, the convent's
garden is built on the ruins of an ancient villa. The church
of Santa Maria, controlled by S. Saba till the 13th century,
became an abbey in 1244. From that time on, the structure underwent
a long period of decay till its reconstruction in 1740, ordered
by Giuseppe Fonseca, bishop of Oporto. At present the convent
is property of an English college, where English seminarians
usually spend their holidays. Along the road leading to the
convent's entrance there is a roman sepulchre dug in the
peperino rocks, whose front is decorated with twelve fasces,
the element.
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