PENNE, a town and episcopal see of Italy, in the province of Teramo, 26 m. S.E. of Teramo, and 16 m. inland from the Adriatic, 1437 ft. above sea-level. Pop. (1901), 10,394. The cathedral has been much altered; in its treasury is some fine 13th (?) century silversmiths’ work; the church of S. Giovanni has a fine cross by Nicola di Guardiagrele, and that of S. Maria in Colleromano, outside the town, a Romanesque portal. Many of the houses have fine terra-cotta friezes. It occupies the site of the ancient Pinna, the chief city of the Vestini, who entered into alliance with Rome in 301 B.C. and remained faithful to her through the Hannibalic wars and even during the revolt of the Italian allies in 90 B.C. No remains of the Roman period exist, even the city walls being entirely medieval.
See G. Colasanti, Pinna (Rome, 1907); V. Bindi, Monumenti degli Abruzzi (Naples, 1889, pp. 565 sqq.).