The temple dedicated to Curian Hercules rises on a sacred area frequented uninterruptedly by pagans (the earliest evidences are rock-paintings discovered in a few caves at the foot of Monte Morrone) and by Christians;who occupied the area above;where there is the Celestinian hermitage of Sant'Onofrio.Situated on the main cattle-track that connects L'Aquila to Foggia;since its foundation in the II-I century B.C the temple had given hospitality to shepherds and sheep looking for Hercules's protection.The structure develops on two levels:a lower terrace and an upper one.The latter includes the remains of an arcade;a little temple;whose mosaic floors are decorated with sea-scenes;and a stone fountain carved in the rock.The lower terrace consisted of fourteenth barrel-vaulted rooms;most likely intended for commercial activity.The temple was deserted in the II century A.D.;when a landslide made it inaccessible;an excavation carried out in the Fifties of the XX century brought to light the sanctuary;which;since the Middle Ages had been mistaken for Ovid's suburban villa.