Venafro (Latin: Venafrum; Greek: Οὐέναφρον) is a comune in the province of Isernia, region of Molise, Italy.

This fairly mild climate derives from being in an exposed southern plain closed from the mountains; but in periods of high pressure thermal excursions temperatures may vary 15 to 20 °C (59 to 68 °F) between day and night.

Although its founding is attributed to Diomedes, child of Tydeus and Deipyle, characters in Greek mythology, the ancient name of Venafrum derives from Samnite sources.

The only occasion on which Venafrum figures prominently in history is during the Social War, 88 BCE, when it was betrayed into the hands of the Samnite leader Marius Egnatius, and two Roman cohorts that formed the garrison were put to the sword.

Cicero more than once alludes to the great fertile ground of the territory,[6] that the tribune Rullus proposed by his agrarian law to divide among the Roman citizens.

Tye town is mentioned by Horace as a resort, renowned for its amenities,[7] while Pliny the Elder also speaks of the waters located there.

[10] From autumn 1943 to spring of 1944 Venafro was the scene (along with Pozzilli, Filignano, San Pietro Infine) of bitter fighting between the Germans, entrenched in the mountains to the north and the British – French – U.S. along the Gustav Line, during the Battle of Monte Cassino.

In the spring of 1984, the city was severely damaged by the earthquake originating in the nearby Valle di Comino, in the province of Frosinone.

In 1987, the city was named by Censis (Centro Studi Sociali Investments, an institute of socio-economic research), one of the 100 municipalities of the "Great Little Italy."

Currently, the halls of this castle have become the Museo Nazionale del Molise - an art gallery in which paintings are collected from several different churches abandoned or closed in Venafro.

The exhibition retraces, through drawing, print, painting and video the routes of the Allied and German conflict on the adjacent territory during 1943 and 1944.

Four of Shemilt's works were purchased for the national collection (MiBACT - Ministero dei beni e delle attività culturali e del turismo) in 2016.

[10] On the Decumanus Maximus is a theater of considerable size and presents a scaenae frons of about 60 m, with an auditorium capable of hosting 3,500 spectators.

It is adorned with materials from other monuments of earlier eras (Roman elements, Christian decorations, and Bishop Pietro di Ravenna's bas-relief which is called "March Settecappotti").

[10] The Basilica of San Nicandro was built atop Roman ruins on the eastern outskirts of the city, on the road to Isernia.

Among the works exhibited are Roman artifacts: the "Venus of Venafro" by Antonine (2nd century AD), two large statues of men who are identified as Augustus and Tiberius, and the great memorial or "Tavola Acquaria" where the regulations designed to regulate the use (edict of Augustus) of the Roman aqueduct during the Augustan age.

Notable are the two thirds of African origin, mainly Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian and Senegalese, who fell in large part during the Battle of Monte Cassino.

A monument was erected that refers explicitly to the North African minarets decorated with ceramic tiles of blue, set against the whitewashed walls, and some inscriptions.

[14] Located at the border between Molise and Campania, in the municipalities of Venafro and Capriati a Volturno is a man-made wildlife preserve.

Situated along the short stretch of the Volturno River, which marks the border between Molise and Campania, The Mortine Oasis occupies an artificial waterway created by the construction of a hydroelectric dam.

Currently, the holiday begins on May 17 (Sant N'candriegl) with the month dedicated to the saints, with a procession and return to the church of the convent of St. Nicandro.

On June 16 there is a procession in the evening with a bust of St. Nicandro and relics from the church of the saint, followed by the solemn vespers presided by the bishop and the clergy.

The festival culminates with an impressive procession on the 18th, followed by thousands of people, in which the statues of three saints are carried from the church of St. Nicandro to that of the Annunciation.