Presumed to be a basilica built over the tomb.
Description: The body of the martyr was likely venerated at the site of his burial, as suggested by a dedicatory inscription that the compiler of the more extensive version of the *passio* claims to have read: *”Here rests the holy and venerable martyr Alexander, whose deposition is celebrated on the 11th day before the Kalends of October (September 21).”*
Usage period: Between 400 and 599
Relic: Bones
Collection of votive offerings: Data not available
The oldest attestation of the sanctuary is considered to be the *Passio Sancti Alexandri*, preserved in two more or less contemporary versions dating between the 5th and 6th centuries. This period is taken as a broad *terminus ante quem* for the sanctuary’s establishment, though the dating could potentially be pushed back to the 4th century. The longer version of the *passio* mentions a church built over the saint’s tomb and consecrated on March 23, 321. Additionally, the summary of the Acts of Saint Alexander in Ado’s Martyrology references structural modifications to this church by Pope Damasus (356–384). Finally, two small altar pillars discovered in 1875 at the 30th kilometer (XX mile) of the Via Cassia, dated to the late 4th century, are believed by scholars to belong to the early Christian basilica. Conversely, 1053 serves as a *terminus post quem* for the sanctuary’s abandonment, as a bull by Leo IX from that year confirms the transfer of the *ecclesia Sancti Alexandri quae est in Baccanis* and the *Burgus Sancti Alexandri* to the canons of St. Peter’s.
The *passio* has been regarded as the founding legend, fulfilling the desire for detailed knowledge about the saints venerated at the site, though it holds little historical value. Specifically, the *Passio Sancti Alexandri* survives in two roughly contemporary versions, both dated to the 5th–6th centuries. Its topographical details are so precise that they suggest the compiler had firsthand knowledge of the mentioned locations (cf. Josi, in *Bibliotheca Sanctorum*, vol. I, cols. 789–790). Some scholars believe a third, now lost, version of the *passio* existed, which Ado may have drawn from (cf. Fiocchi Nicolai, 1988, p. 108).
Vincenzo Fiocchi Nicolai argues that the sanctuary developed around the martyr Alexander’s tomb and became a focal point for settlement. Following a common practice from the 9th century onward, the community likely shifted from the *mansio ad Baccanas* at the XXI mile of the Via Cassia (modern km 31) toward the XX–XIX mile (km 30–29) of the same road. The site, called *Burgus Sancti Alexandri* in the Middle Ages, appears as the inhabited area of Baccano in Eufrosino della Volpaia’s 1547 map and is still locally known today by the significant toponym *Sant’Alisandra* (sic!). The late 4th-century altar pillars found in the 19th century at the 30th kilometer (XX mile) of the Via Cassia are the only material evidence of the early Christian basilica mentioned in hagiographic sources. A discrepancy between textual and archaeological evidence arises from the *passio*’s claim that Saint Alexander was buried in a furnace near the baths of the *mansio* at the XXI mile, while the discovery of the pillars at the XX mile suggests at least a monumental memorial at the martyrdom site. There is no obstacle to hypothesizing the martyr’s basilica was located at the XX mile. On the other hand, recent excavations at the *mansio ad Baccanas* have uncovered no early Christian remains (cf. Corsi 2000, pp. 151–152).
Piazza Cesare Leonelli, 15, 00063 Campagnano di Roma RM, Italy
