The small town of Cupra Marittima has a triple identity that is evident in its urban structure: a modern, lively seaside resort with a unique natural history museum on the coast; a Medieval village whose traces can be seen in the ruins of the ancient castle of Sant’Andrea (thirteenth century ); thirdly, the Roman town, a major port as early as Greek and Etruscan times, of which significant evidence survives in the Roman nymphaeum archaeological area and in the Museo Archeologico del Territorio.

The Malacological Museum is just a few steps from the sea, on the SS16 Adriatica road, and its extensive shell collections are unique in Italy. The ruins of the ancient castle of Sant’Andrea, set on the eponymous hill, tell the story of a Medieval village whose population moved away from the shore in the twelfth century to escape the threat of barbarian invasions.

At about three kilometres from the centre we find the Area Archeologica del Ninfeo romano, an archaeological park of 32 hectares and site of the old Roman town, with its forum and temple of Venus, a villa with nymphaeum and baths with late-Imperial mosaics. The archaeological material recovered in this area over the last few decades is now on display in the Museo Archeologico del Territorio, located in the Medieval village of Marano, in a 1700s tower-house (Palazzo Cipolletti ), arranged in three interesting sections (prehistoric, Picene and Roman ).