| NATURE AND STORY IN VALLO DI DIANO
The wide dell of Vallo di Diano, surrounded by calcareous mountains and Dolomite mountains of Cilento and Lucan Apennines, offers enchanting natural beauties and an extraordinary archaeological heritage made of history and art. Vallo di Diano was an important crossroads of ancient and great civilizations as the material kept in the Civic museum of Montesano sulla Marcellana shows. The museum contains the manufactured products of the area, the tools, and the objects that show the activities of the inhabitants of the area. Thus they show the culture of the territory. The story of Vallo di Diano is linked to that of the several attempts to reclaim the marshes created by waters of Tanagro River. After Roman domination, the area was conquered and destroyed by Visigoths led by Alaric. Then it was conquered by Longobards. This territory was inhabited by the famous brigands and also Giuseppe Garibaldi passed through it.
The area includes the town of Atena Lucana, Buonabitacolo, Casalbuono, Monte San Giacomo, Montesano sulla Marcellana, Padula, Pertosa, Polla, Sala Consilina, San Pietro al Tanagro, San Rufo, Sant'Arsenio, Sanza, Sassano, and Teggiano.
The area is perfect for pleasant excursions along the mountain paths or towards the deep charming caves. The scenarios are extraordinarily picturesque; gastronomy is delicious thanks to the tasty typical products, often the protagonists of nice festivals; one of the most typical products is the cheese called Caciocavallo Silano, made with the milk of the cows fed only on mountains pastures.
Vallo di Diano offers many events. The most famous is the artistic and gastronomic itinerary dedicated to Princess Costanza, "Alla tavola della Principessa Costanza", in Teggiano. The event recalls an event happened in 1474: Antonello Sanseverino, Prince of Salerno and Lord of Diano, married Costanza, the daughter of Federico da Montefeltro, Grand Duke of Urbino. This festival is an important occasion to visit the artistic and cultural heritage of Teggiano. For example visitors will enjoy a visit of SS. Pietą Monastery, a XIV century building with a beautiful Renaissance portico and a wonderful stone portal.
In the territory there is also the majestic charterhouse dedicated to Saint Lawrence, in Padula. This is one of the most spectacular monuments in Southern Italy, ordered by Tommaso Sanseverino, count of Marsico, in 1306. A nice event takes place here: the omelette made with 1000 eggs. The event is inspired by an episode happened in 1535: Charles the V of Spain coming back from the victorious battle of Tunisi, stopped in the charterhouse with his army. People of the charterhouse prepared an omelette using 1000 eggs. A charming event of Sala Consilina is the "shot of the cock", during the feast dedicated to Our Lady, Madonna di Castello. A wood cock goes down a rope along a path of 300 m. If it stops before the end, it is a sign of bad luck for the community. For the occasion, visitors can enjoy a visit to Grancia di San Lorenzo, built in the first half of XVI century.
Vallo di Diano is rich of natural beauties, such as the caves of Pertosa, used as the setting of a festival dedicated to ethnic music and culture, "Negro" and a representation of the Inferno by Dante. Grotte dell'Angelo are beautiful caves with small and big caverns, galleries, alleys. One of the most beautiful caves is called Sala delle Meraviglie; a unique cave is called Sala delle Spugne. Another beautiful cave is the one called Sala dei Pipistrelli (the cave of bats) because thousands of bats lived there.
In Sassano there is the open-air museum with orchids and ancient cultivations, Valle delle Orchidee e delle Antiche Coltivazioni. |
