Named after con­sul Appius Claudius Cae­cus, who laid the first 90km sec­tion in 312 BC, ancient Rome’s regi­na viarum (queen of roads) was extend­ed in 190 BC to reach Brin­disi. Via Appia Anti­ca has long been one of Rome’s most exclu­sive address­es, a beau­ti­ful cob­bled thor­ough­fare flanked by grassy fields, Roman struc­tures and tow­er­ing pine trees. Most splen­did of the ancient hous­es was Vil­la dei Quin­tili, which was so desir­able that Emper­or Com­modus mur­dered its own­er and took it for him­self.