COMNE'NUS (Lat., from Gk. lionviiv6s, Korn n(nos). The name of a family. originally from Paphlagonia. of which several members occu pied the throne of the Byzantine Empire, from 1057 to 1204. and that of Trebizond, from 1204 to 1461. After the fall of Constantinople one branch of the family settled in Saxony, another in Corsica; but the attempt which has been made to trace the descent of the Bonaparte family from a branch of the Comneni is not supported by valid evidence. See ALEXIS; .NNxik. COMNENA ; BYZANTINE EMPIRE.
CO'MO (Lat. Vomuni). The capital of the province of the same name in north Italy, sit uated at the southwestern end of Lake Como, at a distance of 28 miles by rail from Milan (Alap: Italy. I) 2). The surrounding country is of great picturesqueness. The city is sur rounded by hills covered with gardens and groves and curtain; some buildings of consider able architectural merit. The marble cathedral belongs to different periods and is built in dif ferent styles. It was begun in the Gothic at the end of the• fourteenth century; the larger portion was constructed in the Renaissance style. mostly by Rodari dining the fifteenth century. while the dome is of relatively recent origin. The interior is dmorated with rare pictures and monuments: in the main entrance are placed two statues of Pliny the Elder and the Younger. both of whom were born at. Como. The Basilica of Sant' .Ab bondio, a building of Lombard origin, rebuilt in the eleventh century and recently restored, is of great artistic value. The Church of San
tissima Annunziata, situated on the promenade outside of the town, is remarkable for its rich decorations of marble and gold. Adjoining the cathedral is the city hall. a large. arcaded struc ture, built of different-colored stone. and com pleted in 1215. Other noteworthy buildings are the theatre, built in 1813; the lyceum, founded in 1824; and the city museum. with itscolleetions of Roman antiquities. arms, and coins, opened in 1897. Como has extensive manufactures of silk, velvet. and knit•ware. The commerce is also of euisiderable import a nee.
The ancient Comma was a city of the Insubres, occupied by the Ilumans in ]I. c. 196, and colonized by Ca‘sar as a military post to repress the Alpine tribes. In the Middle Ages it was a stronghold of the Ghibellines and the `open door of the emperor; into Daly.' In 1127 it was destroyed by the Milanese, and rebuilt by Frederick 1. in 1159. Later it was ruled by the Rosen family. and in 1333 came into the possession of the Visconti, from which time it shared the fortunes of Milan. In 1859 it was a centre of the agita tion headed by Garibaldi.
Como is the seat of a bishop and the birthplace of Innoeent XI. and Clement MIL, the historian Giovio, and Volta. Population, in 1881 (com mune), 25,560; in 1001, 38,895.