Sulmona (Sulmóne in Abruzzo) is an Italian town of 23 049
inhabitants in the province of L'Aquila in Abruzzo. Located in the
heart of Abruzzo, close to the Majella National Park, Sulmona is
known worldwide for its centuries-old tradition in the production of
confetti. It is also the bishopric of the homonymous diocese
Sulmona-Valva.
Formerly oppidum of the Peligni, later a Roman
municipality, in 43 BC. Sulmo was the birthplace of the Latin poet
Publio Ovidio Nasone. In the Middle Ages, by the will of Frederick
II, it was from 1233 to 1273 the seat of the execution of Abruzzo.
It is among the cities decorated with military valor for the war of
liberation, awarded the Silver medal for the sacrifices of its
populations and for its activity in the partisan struggle during the
Second World War.
Its municipal territory also includes the towns of Acqua Santa, Albanese, Cavate, Badia, Banchette, Case Bruciate, Case Lomini, Case Panetto, Case Susi Primo, Case Susi Secondo, Casino Corvi, Faiella, Fonte d'Amore, Marane, Santa Lucia, Torrone, Tratturo Primo, Tratturo Secondo, Vallecorvo and Zappannotte.
The historic center has an elliptical appearance, with the ends of
the oval located north and south of the Peligna valley. The cardo
maximus is Corso Ovidio, which borders Piazza Garibaldi in the central
area, while the main streets of the decumani are Viale Antonio De Nino,
Via San Cosimo, Via Corfinio, Via Mazara, Via del Vecchio. The main open
spaces, in addition to the main square, are Piazzale Carlo Tresca, Largo
Mazara, Piazza XX Settembre, Piazza del Popolo.
The historic
center is also bordered by a continuous ring road that surrounds the
entire perimeter of the walls up to the square of the municipal villa,
to the north via Viale Roosevelt and then Via Pescara connects with the
new city, while to the east via the Capograssi bridge to the Cittadella
della Justice, and to the south towards Pacentro, the center connects to
the hospital district via Viale Mazzini. The historic center is rich in
monuments, divided into seven neighborhoods, or "sestieri": Borgo
Pacentrano, Borgo Santa Maria della Tomba, Borgo San Panfilo, Sestiere
Porta Manaresca, Sestiere Porta Japasseri, Sestiere Porta Bonomini and
Sestiere Porta Filiamabili (or Filiorum Amabilis ). Each of these
districts has a coat of arms and a history, and has representatives who
compete in the summer medieval event of the "Giostra chivalresca".
Fortified walls of Sulmona: it is probable that the original city
walls date back to the 3rd century BC, when Sulmona was the capital of
the Italian Peligni, subsequently conquered by Rome. Julius Caesar in 49
BC speaks of Sulmona as a fortified city, and the poet Ovid in the
Amores recalls "the walls of humid Sulmona". The ancient city was
structured more or less like a castrum, with a quadrangular shape,
composed of cardo and decumanus. The early medieval city walls modeled
the Roman area, and maintained its dimensions until the 13th century.
The Roman part embraced the area of Campo San Panfilo and the part of
Corso Ovidio up to the outlet in Piazza Maggiore, there were 6 medieval
gates, two at the ends of the cardo and four at the corners of the
square, and a secondary entrance to the west. The gates corresponded to
as many administrative districts, i.e. the sestieri, whose inhabitants
were also responsible for the custody, maintenance and consolidation of
the defensive system. During the Swabian age, Sulmona assumed the role
of capital of the Giustizierato d'Abruzzo (1233) founded by Frederick
II, the prosperous socio-economic conditions and the geographical
centrality of the city in the new Abruzzo territory favored the large
population of the ancient Roman city. Soon the urban spaces became
saturated, and rural areas outside the walls began to be occupied both
to the north and the south, given that transversal expansion was
prevented by the Vella and Gizio rivers. The extra-urban villages of
Porta Pacentrana, Borgo San Panfilo, Porta Filiamabili and Porta
Sant'Antonio arose, which were surrounded by a new perimeter wall,
completed in 1302 in the northern part. The city of Sulmona took on a
fusiform appearance which is still preserved quite well today, with 7
new gates added to the historic ones, with the later addition of Porta
Saccoccia, near Porta Orientale (or Pacentrana). During the reign of
Alfonso I of Aragon in 1443, corner towers with sloping masonry were
built, of which only the tower near Porta Iapasseri remains. In the 16th
century the city walls began to lose importance, even if they were still
well consolidated, as demonstrated by Pacichelli's map. The disastrous
earthquake of 1706 and subsequent reconstructions caused some doors to
fall, while several sections of the walls were incorporated into
civilian houses.
Although the wall system is still clearly
legible, the actual walls of the Aragonese era are visible only in some
sections, such as at Porta Romana, near the Porta Iapasseri tower in via
Circonvallazione Orientale, at Porta Pacentrana and behind the convent
of Santa Chiara, where the multi-storey car park is located. Of the
seven gates that opened in the first wall, only 4 remain, of which the
best preserved is Porta Filiamabili (or Filiorum Amabilis), dating back
to the fourteenth century in its current configuration, while the other
entrances of Porta Bonomini and Porta Iapasseri have disappeared, and
only traces of the jambs remain. Of the 8 subsequent gates of the second
wall, 6 remain, all in good condition and in use, with the exception of
Porta Napoli, in whose arch a large vase was placed to prevent access to
cars. The tower to the north-east, near Porta Iapasseri, is from the
Aragonese era, composed of a sloped bastion and squared ashlar masonry.
Another tower-bastion is located to the west, near Porta Bonomini, built
by the Duke of Calabria during the inspection of the fortifications in
1485. The gates still standing are: Porta Pacentrana - Porta Napoli -
Porta Bonomini - Porta Filiorum Amabilis - Porta Sant'Antonio Abate -
Porta Molina - Porta Romana - Porta Santa Maria della Tomba - Porta
Saccoccia.
Cathedral of San Panfilo: Cathedral church of the city of Sulmona and
of the Diocese of Sulmona-Valva, whose construction dates back to the
year 1075. Today it presents itself as the result of a series of
architectural stratifications superimposed over the centuries starting
from the original construction ( according to tradition) on a Roman
temple. Originally dedicated to Santa Maria, it underwent a series of
transformations already in the 12th century and in that era it was
dedicated to the patron saint of Sulmona, San Panfilo. Struck and
seriously damaged following the earthquake of 1706, it was rebuilt with
baroque shapes, partly still visible today, despite recent restorations.
It has the rank of minor basilica. The facade remains original from the
external point of view, in Gothic style, centered on the portal by
Nicola Salvitti, with a fourteenth-century frescoed lunette, framed in a
round arch, flanked by columns with spiers containing the statues of San
Panfilo and San Pelino . The baroque interior with three naves has two
sarcophagi at the entrance, one of which belongs to Bishop Bartolomeo de
Petrinis. The altar is raised with a flight of stairs, which lead to the
sacristy on one side and to the Gothic crypt with the bishop's
sarcophagus on the other.
Complex of the Santissima Annunziata: it is
a religious building complex founded in 1320 as a hospital for pilgrims,
housed in the Palazzo Annunziata, with a church. The church was rebuilt
in the 15th century, with the Renaissance portal from 1415, although
almost nothing remains of the medieval building today except the late
Gothic bell tower. The church and a large part of the palace were
rebuilt almost from scratch after the strong earthquake of 1706. Even on
the monumental front of the palace there are fifteenth-century elements
linked to late Gothic art. On the rear part of the church stands the
mighty bell tower with mullioned arches. The interior of the church is
Baroque with three naves, four bays with domes. Paintings by Alessandro
Salini are preserved there. The palace houses the Civic Museum. The
post-1706 earthquake façade dates back to the master Norberto Cicco da
Pescocostanzo. The interior is stuccoed with baroque frescoes by
Giambattista Gamba and Alessandro Salini. The apse has works by Giuseppe
Simonelli. The polychrome altar of the Santissima Annunziata is by
Giacomo Spagna (1620). What is striking about the church is the adjacent
Palazzo Annunziata, with a monumental Gothic facade, and an ogival
portal from 1415, with the statue of San Michele Arcangelo. The city
coat of arms on the window is by Antonuccio di Rainaldo. Another
important element is the Gothic three-light window, studded with
clerical figures in relief and two angelic figures holding the city coat
of arms.
Church of San Francesco della Scarpa: it is a monastic
complex built in 1290 at the behest of Charles II of Naples, destined to
be one of the most important Franciscan complexes in Abruzzo until 1706.
Even after the earthquake of 1456, the building had an original and
complex structure, as demonstrated by the traces of the so-called
"Rotonda" near the side entrance from the main street, but after the
earthquake of 1706 the church was completely rebuilt in baroque style,
with a much more simplified planimetric system.
The current
longitudinal layout is rectangular with a single nave, preserving on the
side of the street the relic of a second late-Gothic entrance, perhaps
the most interesting part of the external area. The façade once had a
horizontal crown and today it is salient, with two curvilinear wings,
the result of the downsizing of the internal structures, with the Gothic
part only in the base sector, which retains the splayed ogival portal,
the work of Salvitti. The interior is in the shape of an elongated Greek
cross, whose chapels alternate along the walls, creating a play of
shapes. Near the transept there are two side altars, the presbytery is
quadrangular, in the counter-façade there is the wooden rogan from 1754,
the work of Domenico Antonio Fedeli from Camerino, framed by a
monumental wooden display carved by the Pescolani masters.
The
wooden furnishings are by Ferdinando Mosca, who also worked on the
Cappella dei Lombardi. In the center of the nave stands a Renaissance
wooden crucifix, on the right near the Lombardi chapel there are
depictions of Saint Ambrose, Saint Charles Borromeo and the "Pala della
Visitazione" by Giovanni Paolo Olmo. The large octagonal dome also rises
near the presbytery.
Along the course stands the splayed Gothic
portal, disproportionate in size compared to the main entrance portal,
demonstrating the original majesty of the complex.
Next to the
church is the eighteenth-century Palazzo San Francesco, the seat of the
Franciscan convent until 1867, and then requisitioned to become the
current municipal seat of the municipality of Sulmona. The interior is
preceded by a large central cloister with arches.
Church of Santa Maria della Tomba: according to tradition, the
church was built over the house of the poet Ovid, or perhaps over a
pagan tomb, hence the name "della Tomba". The current building dates
back to the 13th century, restored in 1619, and rebuilt after 1706
in baroque style, completely dismantled in the internal restorations
of the 1960s, which brought back the Gothic-medieval sobriety. The
façade is late Romanesque with a horizontal crown, divided into two
orders as a frame. The ogival portal is Gothic, similar in shape to
others in the city churches, such as those of San Francesco d'Assisi
(by a certain Jacopo from 1441) and San Panfilo. Its profile is
defined by a pair of octagonal columns, and by the alternation of
small pillars and smooth columns resting on a stone base,
culminating in delicate acanthus leaf capitals. The lunette shows
traces of a fresco of the Coronation of Mary. The central rose
window is from the 15th century, composed of a radial pattern. The
interior has three naves with pointed arches and a presbytery with a
semicircular apse and a wooden trussed ceiling.
Church of the
Congregation of the Holy Trinity: overlooks Corso Ovidio. Although
it has ancient origins, it was completely rebuilt after 1706. The
bust of the Eternal Father was inserted on the portal, the
planimetric layout was reduced to a nave, the small bell tower was
rebuilt in 1744 in smaller forms compared to the original built by
Cesare Lombardo . In 1954 the church was also "cut", that is, moved
back to allow greater accessibility to the street, with the facade
being dismantled and reassembled. It is made of stone ashlars with a
horizontal termination, determined laterally by pilasters and
divided into two orders, by a molded string course frame similar to
that of the crowning. In the lower bay there is the architraved
portal, flanked by two classical columns resting on pedestals, which
support the molded entablature, surmounted by a triangular tympanum,
inside which is the bust of God. The interior has a single nave, and
nevertheless suggests the original Latin cross layout, since two
short lateral arms with chapels open onto the presbytery. The walls
are punctuated by pilaster strips grooved by capitals embellished
with gilding, the roof is made of plaster coffers decorated with
stars and rosettes, which obliterate the painted vault from 1915,
replacing other deteriorated paintings, the work of Carlo
Patrignani. Near the counter-façade there is the precious organ with
choir loft from 1761 made by Ferdinando Mosca. The balustrade of the
stage shows scenes from the Old and New Testament, created by
Crescenzo Pizzala (1777).
Church of Carmine: it was built in
1225, used as a hospital for the sick. In 1634 it became the
property of the Carmelites, initially located in the small church
outside the walls of Santa Maria d'Arabona, who began a series of
reconstruction works that caused the church to lose its ancient
medieval appearance. The façade was created in Neapolitan Baroque by
Carlo Faggi, divided vertically into three parts by double
pilasters, divided horizontally by an entablature with an
inscription regarding the taking of possession by the Carmelites. At
the base stands the central portal with architraves, with a broken
semicircular tympanum, which houses a medallion in relief in the
center depicting the Madonna and Child. In the entablature and in
the architrave below there is the writing: "Novo Inalbatum Decore
1822", in reference to a restoration. The interior of the church has
a rectangular plan with a single nave, covered by a barrel vault
with lunettes, with side chapels near the walls, embellished with
decorative stucco parts and eighteenth-century paintings. Near the
apse there is an iconostasis with two lateral openings, surmounted
by an altarpiece with images of the Madonna del Carmine, flanked by
the statues of Elijah the prophet and the disciple Elisha.
Badia Morronese - Abbey of Santo Spirito al Morrone: it was founded
outside the walls of the monk Pietro da Morrone in the 13th century
to host the Celestine Order. In the 16th century the abbey was
enlarged in 1596 under the abbot Donato da Taranto, equipped with a
bell tower in late Gothic style, and rebuilt after 1706. In 1730 it
was reconsecrated, as attested by the date under the civic clock of
Giovanni De Sanctis. Subsequently, in 1867, with the suppression of
the order, the monastery became a school and prison, until its
abandonment and subsequent recovery in the twentieth century, as the
Sulmona headquarters of the Maiella National Park body. The central
courtyard of the complex, known as the "plane trees", constitutes
the churchyard. The front by Donato di Rocco da Pescocostanzo is
from the first half of the 18th century, with a Borrominian imprint,
with the alternation of concave and convex lines and the use of the
giant order in the columns, which recall the model of the church of
San Carlo alle Four Fountains. The portal flanked by Ionic columns
on a base is surmounted by a panel that frames a niche. A high wavy
entablature divides the façade, which also features in the upper
order the overlapping of rectangular openings in the lateral
sections, and the presence of a central window. A crowning
balustrade interspersed with small pillars mediates the passage
between the facade and the sky behind, with a large clock in the
centre. In the reconstruction after the 1706 earthquake, the plan of
the longitudinal church was transformed into a Greek cross, with a
central dome on Corinthian columns, and an extension of the axis of
the deep apse. The interior preserves the polychrome marble altars,
stucco decorations and wooden furnishings, including the 1681 choir
loft on the counter-façade, the work of Giovan Battista del Frate,
gilded by Francesco Caldarella di Santo Stefano. The pictorial
decoration includes the "Portraits of the Abbots" in the dome, by
Joseph Martinez (mid-18th century), a large canvas from the 16th
century Neapolitan school with the "Descent of the Holy Spirit", and
two other canvases portraying San Benedetto di Norcia (1758) and
"Apotheosis of San Pietro Celestino" (1750), created by Antonio
Raffaello Mengs.
Hermitage of Sant'Onofrio al Morrone: it was
founded in 1293 by Pietro da Morrone, who dedicated it to the hermit
Sant'Onofrio. It is located 600 meters above sea level, stuck on the
rock face of Monte Morrone, and overlooks the Peligna valley. In
August 1294 Pietro was reached at the hermitage by the legates of
the conclave, together with the sovereign Charles II of Naples to
announce his election as pontiff. After renouncing the papacy,
Celestine V returned to the hermitage, abandoned in his escape in
1295 to escape the wrath of Pope Boniface VIII. The hermitage was
subsequently frequented by various pilgrims and ascetics, until the
suppression of the Celestine order, whose headquarters was the Badia
Morronese. Despite the renovations, the hermitage maintains its
original characteristics: a short passage leads to a square which
leads to the main church, built over the chapel and cave of Pietro
Angelerio. The church is very simple, in Baroque style, with
fifteenth-century frescoes depicting Christ the King and Saint John
the Baptist. At the back wall is the original oratory of Celestine
V, together with the hermits' cells and the natural cave. The small
chapel is covered with frescoes by a certain "Magister Gentilis",
which represent the Crucifixion, the Madonna and San Giovanni
Minore; in the lunette above the Madonna and Child is painted on a
blue background decorated with stars.
Church of San Filippo
Neri: overlooks Piazza Garibaldi, on the east side. The church was
built in 1677 and was smaller than its current shape; the main seat
of the Jesuits was in the church of Sant'Ignazio which was located
in Piazza XX Settembre (now disappeared). Originally the church
already existed in the 14th century, where the Augustinian monks had
their headquarters, and only the Gothic-Angevin style portal
remains, reassembled in the current parish of San Filippo. After the
earthquake of 1706, the church was rebuilt in 1785 at the behest of
Baron Giambattista Mazaram, and finished in 1794, on the occasion of
the visit to Sulmona of Ferdinand IV of Bourbon. With the
suppression of the Filipino order, the church was used for various
purposes, including the headquarters of the Guardia di Finanza. The
main element of interest is the portal of the old church of
Sant'Agostino, definitively demolished in 1885; it has a pointed
arch with a splay underlined by a sequence of twisted columns, and
by the large gable frame that above it. The cuspidate pediment shows
the coats of arms of the Angevin and Sanità families, who donated
various sums of money for the enrichment of the church. In the
center of the architrave there is the cruciferous Mystical Lamb,
while on the sides four noble coats of arms. The interior has a
single nave, with an eighteenth-century rectangular layout,
decorated with four side altars, divided into two square bays
covered by false domes, with a circular base on plumes. Near the
presbytery there are eighteenth-century paintings, such as that of
the Madonna and Child by Amedeo Tedeschi, the altar from 1888 shows
the paintings of the Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Conception by
Vincenzo Conti.
Church of San Domenico: it was built in 1280
at the behest of Charles II of Anjou, initially dedicated to San
Nicola di Bari. The convent included in the Dominican monastic
complex communicated with the nearby one of Santa Caterina
d'Alessandria, used for female nuns , and was enlarged in the 15th
century thanks to the offers of Joanna II of Naples and Ludovico da
Taranto, enriched with a vast library. In 1815 the order was
suppressed and the library was moved to the town hall. The complex
today appears to have been tampered with due to the unfinished
reconstruction after the 1706 earthquake, as demonstrated by the
main facade. The temple retains its rectangular plan with three
naves, the façade has a facing of squared ashlars that reaches half
of the axis: only the first floor part was rebuilt in neoclassical
style with the curved tympanum portal. It is decorated with a
sculpture of the Mystical Lamb carrying the cross, surmounted by a
four-petal rosette, symbol of the Dominican order. The interior has
three naves with round arches, supported by sturdy square pillars.
The baptismal font is located at the entrance, built in the 19th
century by Don Vincenzo Pantaleo; along the walls there are numerous
altars, with eighteenth-century paintings, and there is an ancient
Umbrian altarpiece from the sixteenth century depicting the
"Deposition", subsequently moved to the diocesan museum, following
the 2009 earthquake.
Former Monastery of Santa Chiara:
overlooking Piazza Maggiore (or Piazza Garibaldi), dating back to
1269. It was built at the behest of the Blessed Floresella da
Palena. After the earthquake of 1706, it was almost completely
rebuilt and included in the historic centre, but soon lost its
function as a church and was transformed into a college in 1866.
Today it houses the diocesan museum. The renovation by the architect
Fantoni was limited to giving a new look to the medieval building,
without altering its layout. The internal spatiality, however, was
transformed thanks to the raising of the presbytery area with the
insertion of a low profile elliptical dome, and the creation of
lateral niches with wooden altars from the Pescocostanzo school. The
walls are punctuated by Corinthian pilasters, which support a high
molded entablature, on which the barrel vaulted roof is set. On the
side walls there are six carved wooden choirs, intended for
cloistered nuns until 1866. The main altar dates back to 1735 with
the altarpiece of the "Glory of Santa Chiara" by Sebastiano Conca.
The first altar along the right side is adorned with a canvas of the
Nativity, and the subsequent ones contain the paintings of Saint
Francis in the tomb of the blessed Floresenda, the "Marriage of the
Virgin" by Alessandro Salini and the painting of Saint Anthony the
Abbot.
Church of Santa Caterina d'Alessandria: it was built
in 1325 with the female Dominican convent, in close correspondence
with the nearby monastery of San Domenico; it was restored in the
15th century by Baron Pietro Giovanni Corvo. This Renaissance
apparatus was destroyed in 1706, and the church rebuilt in its
current baroque style. In the 19th century the complex began to
slowly decline, until in the 20th century the municipality, with the
suppression of the female Dominican order, purchased the structure
and used it as a school building, with some rooms reserved for the
remaining nuns. The church granted in 1967 to the Cateriniana
Academy of Culture, served as an auditorium for a certain period.
The main façade in tanned stone is characterized by the curvilinear
shape of the profile, created through short lateral concavities,
from which the central body projects, reaching out towards the urban
space in front. The façade is divided into two levels, the lower one
from which a double order of composite pilasters departs on a high
base, and the upper one with Ionic pilasters, which support the
crowning of the broken semicircular tympanum façade at the top,
behind which the dome peeps out. octagonal of the elliptical dome.
The central part is highlighted by the elegant portal with a band
order and a broken semicircular tympanum which echoes the solution
of the crowning and by the large window above with a molded frame, a
triangular tympanum with a curved profile which houses the symbol of
the cogwheel, Santa's torture instrument Catherine. The interior has
an elliptical plan, the only example in Sulmona, with an entrance
corresponding to the major axis and two deep chapels along the minor
one, which overall give it a cruciform appearance. The dome is also
elliptical, built by Ferdinando Fuga.
Church of San Gaetano:
it is one of the first churches in Sulmona, founded in the 8th
century, although it was extensively remodeled in the following
centuries. The current church retains little of the medieval style,
being in baroque forms. The façade is very simple, in tanned stone,
framed by corners and divided into two levels by a molded frame. The
median axis is underlined by the elegant stone portal, remodeled in
1853 with Tuscan pilasters, a mixtilinear crowning architrave with
volutes, which houses a shell in relief in the centre. The central
window is decorated in the upper frame with an angelic head from
1739. On the perimeter wall of the church a bas-relief was found
depicting a scene of transhumance, dating back to the 1st century
AD, now preserved in the Civic Museum of Sulmona, and shows a
shepherd with curved stick with the flock and a chariot with three
horses. The interior of this church is very simple, in a sober
Baroque style with a single nave with a barrel vault, side chapels,
of which the last one on the right from the 17th century preserves a
reliquary with a reliquary of San Gaetano Thiene.
Church of
San Rocco: the church already existed in the 15th century, probably
used as a "seat" for the people in Piazza Maggiore, and after the
plague of the 16th century it was named after the current saint. In
1521 some faithful had paintings made to decorate the entire chapel.
Scholars think that the church was the popular seat in the 15th
century, where the popular representation of the city's three mayors
met. The church was damaged in 1706 by the earthquake, and rebuilt.
The church has a simple structure with a square plan in which, on
three sides, there is a large central round arch. The façade
overlooks the square, presenting a curvilinear crown, convex in the
centre, with lateral lantern-shaped decorations. At its apex is the
small baroque bell tower, with round arches containing the bells.
The small internal compartment has a single nave, with a circular
cap decorated with the coffered motif. The internal painted wooden
statue depicts San Rocco, of the Neapolitan school. Also part of the
kit was a silver statue, resting on a cylindrical base, donated by
Camilla di Giovanni de Capite, which was exhibited on the day of the
feast of San Rocco. This sculpture is today preserved for safety
reasons in the civic museums of Palazzo Annunziata.
Church of
Santa Lucia: it is located on the Corso, near Porta Napoli. It was
probably part of a larger complex of Benedictine nuns. The monastery
was then closed in 1406 due to family conflicts between the Merlinos
and the Quatrarios, which were later quelled by San Giovanni da
Capestrano; the complex passed to the Celestines who held it until
1656. After the earthquake of 1706 the church was rebuilt, but it
completely lost the prestige of the past, since the monastery was no
longer opened there, and the orders moved elsewhere. The simple
façade with a horizontal crown and stone masonry features a stone
portal with a molded frame, surmounted by a small stone shield with
the letters N.G.V.M. (Nativity of the Glorious Virgin Mary). To
underline the median axis of the facade is a central rectangular
window, along the wall towards the main street there is a Romanesque
style walled portal, with a round lunette, and above a bas-relief of
the Tree of Life with Adam and Eve , surmounted in turn by a pelican
with the Agnus Dei. The symbol of the pelican was adopted in
Christianity because it was believed that the flesh was torn off to
feed to the young in times of famine. The interior has a single nave
with a wooden trussed ceiling, enriched by eighteenth-century
paintings and statues of Saint Anthony of Padua and Saint Lucia.
Parish of Cristo Re: it is the main modern church of Sulmona, as
well as the most interesting. Main church of the modern area of
Sulmona, which overlooks Piazza Capograssi. It was built in 1973 by
Carlo Mercuri, conceived as a closed space delimited by a flat
ceiling and an exposed concrete wall, which winds along a sinuous
perimeter, with loops and fissures. A continuous ribbon that
determines concave and convex spaces, niches and pillars; a
fantastic generating cylinder that creates a chiaroscuro effect in
both internal and external environments, positive and negative. The
lighting is created following two principles: from above, groups of
cylinders arranged in rosettes, covered externally with
double-walled Perspex lenses, allow the sky to be seen; laterally
where in some points the wall breaks and doubles, creating slots,
some narrow and tall windows let light of variable intensity and
tone filter through depending on the arrangement and the height of
the sun.
Church of San Francesco di Paola: it was built in
1620 by the Paolotti Fathers, who received the land from the
municipality. Captain Vincenzo De Benedictis expanded the building
in 1662, donating it to the Order of Minims, and it was rebuilt
after 1706, reconsecrated in 1742. Due to precarious economic
conditions, the Paolottis sold the church in 1770, which became the
main chapel of cemetery functions, together with the land. In 1866
the Capuchins had to leave the convent of San Giovanni, and took
over the convent and the nearby vegetable garden on their property,
where they settled. However, the church, guarded by a hermit,
remained the property of the bishop until 1906. From that date the
bishop of Sulmona, mons. Nicola Iezzoni, entrusted the pastoral care
of the church to the Capuchins. The church has a baroque façade with
a curvilinear shape of the façade, divided into two bays of
different heights, divided into three by a double order of
pilasters. In the center of the lower portion the architraved portal
is surmounted by a lunette resting on slender pilasters which extend
upwards with pulvini. In the lateral sectors, two ovals with the
Minimi coat of arms with the writing "Charitas" flank the portal. At
the center of the upper span in a niche there is the statue of the
dedicatee saint, and a mixtilinear tympanum with a cross at the top
serves as the crowning of the median sector of the façade. Set back
is the slender bell tower from 1966, in false baroque style, 30
meters high, pierced by two orders of single-lancet windows on each
side. The interior is in the shape of a Latin cross in Baroque
style: the stucco decorations and the faux marble surfaces refer to
nineteenth-century interventions.
Convent of San Giovanni
Evangelista dei Cappuccini: the monastery was built near the ancient
church of San Giovanni outside Porta Latina (today Porta
Pacentrana), since the place of the new headquarters of the Capuchin
fathers seemed to be healthier than the old building near the church
of Saint Francis of Paola. The church of San Giovanni already
existed in the 15th century, as demonstrated by the façade, and was
enlarged in the 17th century in Baroque style, and the friars
celebrated 8 provincial chapters there. In 1866, with the
suppression of the orders, the convent passed into state ownership,
and the friars had to leave it, moving to the church of San
Francesco di Paola. There were unsuccessful attempts at reopening in
1885, when the friars settled near Porta Napoli, including the lands
of San Francesco di Paola. The provincial chapter of 21 May 1897 was
celebrated in the new headquarters, which re-elected Father Giuseppe
Incani as minister. In the following years the Capuchins were able
to return to the ancient convent of San Giovanni, now immersed in
the north-east expansion area. The convent has a rectangular plan
with a large building used as a cloister and accommodation for the
fathers, and the church structures have a longitudinal plan. The
churchyard has a central stationary cross, the salient façade is in
the Abruzzo Renaissance style, with an arched portico at the base.
The bell tower dates back to 1962, made of bricks, respecting the
ancient style of the Abruzzo towers. The interior has a single nave,
preserving the sober style of the early seventeenth-century Baroque,
which has simply adapted to the ancient medieval plan with stucco
decorations near the cross vaults. The wooden altar and the precious
tabernacle were built during the provincialate of Father Angelo
Urbanucci of Bucchianico, according to the testimony of Filippo
Tussio; the author was Brother Andrea da San Donato with help.
Convent of Sant'Antonio di Padova: it was built with the
original dedication to San Nicola della Forma, mentioned in the land
registry of 1376; the Antonian convent with the hospital was built
in 1443 at the behest of San Giovanni da Capestrano, when he
intervened to resolve the internal struggles between the Merlino and
Quatrario families. The convent was entrusted to the Zoccolanti
Fathers, who were followed by the Reformed in 1592. Although damaged
in 1706, the convent always experienced a period of great
development, and was also equipped with an infirmary and a library,
and reconsecrated in 1740. The abolition decree of the religious
orders of 1809 led to the closure of the monastic structure, used as
a militia barracks, leaving only the church open for worship. In
1815 the convent was reopened only to be closed again in 1866 with
the decree of Vittorio Emanuele II: the convent became a judicial
prison, active until 1891, known by the name of "San Pasquale". When
the new prison was built, the convent premises became a detached
section of the State Archives of Sulmona-L'Aquila. The facade of the
church is the result of a reconstruction following the Maiella
earthquake of 1933, while respecting the classic canons of Abruzzo
Romanesque-monastery architecture. The lower bay is covered by a
portico, made up of five round arches. The eighteenth-century portal
is framed by an elegant molded stone frame and by a band order
surmounted by brackets; the broken tympanum houses an aedicule built
by the Mazzara family, who had patronage of the church in the
eighteenth century. The internal Latin cross plan with a single nave
is covered by a barrel vault with lunettes and a dome near the
presbytery. The walls are punctuated by pilaster strips painted in
fake marble, with gilded Corinthian capitals; the frescoes and
decorations are part of the late Baroque remodeling of the 19th
century. The monumental wooden organ is located on the
counter-façade, created by the Fedeli family of Camerino (1756).
Palazzo Annunziata: it is part of the monastic complex of the
Santissima Annunziata. The current conformation dates back to the late
1400s, with alterations to the interior after the earthquake of 1706.
The façade is the one best preserved in the original project, given that
the interior was modified after the suppression of the order, and the
installation of the Civic Museum. The oldest part of the palace is the
sector with the Clock door; this clock was installed in the 16th
century; the door presents the statue of San Michele as decorative
elements, two pairs of columns on each side which extend beyond the
capitals, twisting into symmetrical volutes, then tapering and ending in
small roses. Slightly higher is the three-light window decorated with
small twisted columns resting on crouching lions and small statues in
the round; near the jambs the Four Virtues are depicted, on the opposite
side the symbol of the Mystical Lamb inside a ray, supported by two
angels. Above is the civic coat of arms. The central part of the
building is Renaissance in style; the main portal gives access to the
Chapel of the Body of Christ, adorned with garlands, festoons,
tympanums, volutes, animal figures of reptiles and birds, in the middle
part there are two piers with two roundels and a sculptural group of the
"Madonna with Child among angels ". The portal is surmounted by a
mullioned window with two angels holding the coat of arms of the Pio
Ente della Casa Santa dell'Annunziata, decorated with candelabra motifs
and rich tracery. The last lateral part of 1519-22 has a fairly classic
portal, without a tympanum and of small dimensions; the Angel Gabriel
and the Virgin are represented within two roundels placed in the plumes.
At the base of the piers there is the coat of arms of the Annunziata,
and near the pillars the Four Doctors of the Church Gregory the Great,
Bonaventure, Saint Augustine and Saint Jerome.
Palazzo Sardi: it
is a late sixteenth and eighteenth century structure. What remains of
the original sixteenth-century façade on Largo Angeloni are the square
windows on the ground floor, the smooth ashlar portal with men suns
supporting the upper balcony, and finally the heraldic coat of arms in
the keystone, with the head of a satyr. In the post-1706 reconstruction,
various changes were made, such as in the sector of the second floor
windows, the cornice with the brackets used to unite the composition of
the facade. In the cantonal street on Via Marselli the imprint of the
arch of Porta Manaresca and of the medieval walls can be recognised. The
southern front, a stone buttress and the addition of a balcony near the
order of the sixteenth-century windows, and the pairs of mullioned
windows on the top floor date back to the eighteenth century.
Palazzo Tabassi: is among the most significant examples of Renaissance
noble residences, built in the 15th century by Mastro Pietro da Como
(1449), as indicated by the writing on the portal. The palace was owned
by the Tabassi family, who bought it in 1672 from the De Capite family.
After 1706 it was partly rebuilt, without the original plan being
altered. The palace is on two levels, preserving the classic Durazzo
portal; at the corners of the frame on display there are two shields
with the Tabassi coat of arms. What is most striking is the splendid
mullioned window in late Gothic style, the only survivor of the upper
floor, replaced after 1706. The window recalls the decorations of the
Annunziata complex, finely crafted with friezes and decorations: on the
jambs flanked by columns it rests a large pointed arch display, which
repeats the vegetal spiral motif; the central pillar supports two
trilobed pointed arches and in the upper section, a central hexalobular
oculus with lateral arches.
Palazzo del Vescovado: the palace is
located next to the municipal villa, completely rebuilt after 1706 as
desired by bishop Bonaventura Martinelli. The old episcope was adjacent
to the cathedral, but the location was moved a few hundred meters in the
project. With the sums donated by Pope Clement The palace was rebuilt in
1715, including the bishop's seat, seminary and small church of the
Concezione. The palace was sacked in 1799 for the quartering of the
French troops, and not seriously damaged by the earthquakes of 1915 and
1933. The façade is set on two superimposed levels, divided by a high
molded band, and ends with a attic with elliptical openings. The median
axis is highlighted by the vertical succession of portal-balcony-civic
clock; the brackets are curled like a spool, and support the central
balcony above the portal. The crowning is in stone with scrolls, central
cartouche and apical coat of arms; the cartouche bears a painted
inscription regarding the erection of the palace, which began
construction in 1709, at the behest of Martinelli. The simple entrances
to the commercial premises branch off from the central area on the
ground floor, and from the main floor pairs of rectangular windows
embellished with band-like under-sills. Next to the building, on the
right, is the baroque church of the Concezione.
Palazzo
Capograssi: located in via Papa Innocenzo VII, built in 1319 when the
Capograssi family moved to Sulmona. Border with the Sestiere Porta
Iapasseri district. The palace was renovated in the 15th century,
incorporating part of the Palazzo Meliorati, and Cosmato di Gentile was
probably born there in 1336, who would become Pope Innocent VII. The
heraldic insignia of the Meliorati (a shield with a band loaded with a
fallen star accompanied by two cotisse and decussed keys of St. Peter)
are carved on the architrave of the last balcony on the left, together
with the inscription in which it is mentioned, in addition to the name
of pontiff, that of his nephew Ludovico Meliorati II, who owned the
palace in 1470. The oldest part of the palace dates back to 1574, the
year of the renovation by Dionisio Capograssi; It has salient features,
with windowsills resting on molded brackets and the portal, which
retains the affinities of the fifteenth-century Durazzo ones. The layout
makes use of mirrors, close to the classic sixteenth-century taste.
Another peculiarity are the coats of arms: shield truncated in the I
(blue) of the griffin (golden), emerging from the partition; in the II
(silver) to the three bands (red).
Palazzo Corvo or Corvi: it is
divided into two buildings, one from the 16th century, with a portal
similar to that of Palazzo Sardi, and the enormous eighteenth-century
building which stands on Vicolo del Vecchio, vertically divided into
three floors, of which the last modified in the twentieth century. The
main portal leads into the courtyard, on the right side it is accessed
via a double flight of stairs, which leads to the main floor. The
architectural language is characterized by a classical type of
composure, with decorations with vegetal and floral motifs, in a
sixteenth-century style. The façade of the building is asymmetrical,
since the project envisaged the construction of a large palace that
reached Corso Ovidio, which was never built, with the use of Tuscan
pilasters on the ground floor and Ionic pilasters, with horizontal
frames and windowsill frames. It must be remembered that in Sulmona
there are many buildings of the Corvi family, another is the Palazzo
Corvi-Zazzera or the Corvi condominium in viale Roosevelt, number 33.
Municipal theater "Maria Caniglia": it is located on Viale Antonio
De Nino, one of the gates of Porta Iapasseri which flow into Corso
Ovidio. Also known as "Teatro Littorio", it is one of the representative
opera houses of Abruzzo. The entrance vestibule recalls the neoclassical
style; the main façade features Doric semi-columns, which frame five
round arches, which support an entablature with a frieze made up of
alternating metopes and triglyphs. The upper part of the facade, where
windows with a triangular gable open, is concluded by a classic
pediment; inside, a rich stucco decoration distinguishes the vestibule
and smoking room; The small Bohemian crystal chandeliers embellish the
room. There are 700 seats, distributed among the large stalls, with a
horseshoe shape, on 65 boxes, separated by lowered arches divided into 4
orders, an amphitheater and the gallery.
Palazzo Colombini: dates
back to the 16th century, although the current structure is from the
18th century, with post-war interventions. The Durazzo portal remains of
the original structure, with the family emblem; traces of another
Colombini coat of arms are found on the stone pillar located at the
beginning of the steps of the adjacent building at number 26. The coat
of arms represents a marital alliance: a crumpled oval set with the De
Capite insignia.
Palazzo Sanità: it belonged to the noble Umbrian
family of Todi, and dates back to the 15th century, although it was
modified after 1706. The Durazzesque portal with a lowered arch would be
the work of Pietro da Como, who worked in Sulmona in 1449 at Palazzo
Tabassi. The arch is framed by a molded rectangular frame, which arises
just below the impost line; the piers are smooth and without decorative
elements. On the external upper floor there are two Gothic mullioned
windows, which are the artistic emblem of the building. Through the
portal you access a rectangular internal courtyard, characterized by a
four-arched portico, overlooked by ogival portals; the access from via
Solimo has a round arch with mirrored decorations, which is connected
with volutes to the crowning curvilinear tympanum. Gothic shields of the
influential families of Sulmona in the 14th century are preserved on the
sides of the portico.
Palazzo Grilli De Capite: after 1706 the
palace was purchased and renovated by the Grilli family of
Pescocostanzo, who owned it until 1887, when it passed to the De Capite
family. The stone coats of arms placed on the portal are copies of the
originals, restored in 2006; the palace represents one of the greatest
examples of Sulmona civil baroque: the most important episodes are
located in correspondence with the two portal-window systems; the
decorative and chiaroscuro tone is reduced in the correspondence of the
intermediate sectors (minor portals-fanlight-window), and is then
reinvigorated and marks the ends of the façade with the minor
portal-fanlight-minor balcony motif. All the architectural elements
contribute to the rhythm of the façade with different shapes and
decorative solutions, increasingly complex, starting from the square
windows with fanlight shell, moving on to the windows with flat jambs
and central pediment with shell, to the French windows of the smaller
balconies and to those of the larger balconies with a curvilinear
profile termination, to finally reach the access portals framed by
riveted pilasters, and surmounted by volutes that frame the baroque
pediment.
Palazzo Giovanni Veneziano Dalle Palle: it is located
along Corso Ovidio, with one side facing Piazza XX Settembre, built in
1484 by the Venetian Giovanni Dalle Palle. Originally the main entrance
was towards Piazza XX Settembre, but changes occurred after 1706. The
ancient portal was relocated to the center of the new facade as the main
entrance, and is surmounted by the niche with Saint George on horseback.
The twin lowered arch portal dates back to the eighteenth century, with
a keel profile, flanked by Ionic columns on a base, and treated with
rustic ashlar that creeps up to the shaft of the columns. The entrance
arch bears a shield in the center, with the insignia of the Trasmondi
Sala family, surmounted by the elegant balustrade of the windowsill on
the main floor. On this front there was a portico replaced by three
arches. On the support pillars there were statues on shelves, one of
which represented a mermaid with two dolphins. The only superior
structures, dating back to the late fifteenth century, are the elegant
mullioned windows refined by slender central columns, and the central
balcony window.
Gothic house of Giovanni Sardi: located in Vico
dei Sardi. The small medieval building belonged to the Sardinians of
Sardinia, renovated by Giovanni in 1477, as attested by the sign on the
window architrave. The front elevation in exposed stone features a
Durazzesque portal, very frequent in local architecture in the Middle
Ages; the central octagonal pillar bears the same moldings as the frame,
and the four lights are each enriched by a pair of volute corner
brackets. At the top there is a large Guelph window slightly off-axis
with respect to the portal, with late Gothic and Renaissance decorative
motifs. The interior is structured around a small central courtyard with
a trapezoidal plan, with flint paving, of which a short staircase with
parapet and handrail leads to the upper floor; one apartment in
particular is decorated with a loggia covered by a wooden roof, made up
of arches set on four octagon-shaped corner columns.
Palazzo
Mazzara: the palace was built on an ancient building completely
destroyed in 1706, it presents decorative motifs typical of the Baroque,
with compact façades and bound at the ends by powerful freestone
cornerstones, on the model of the Sulmona noble palaces of the period.
The palace was built around 1748, the year in which the notary Patrizio
di Sebastiano drew up the Mazzara property deed. The plan is square, on
the ground floor there are various entrances for the commercial
premises, with nineteenth-century decorative treatment in horizontal
bands. On the main floor there are windows with fluted pilasters of the
Ionic order and curvilinear tympanums; mixtilinear balconies alternate
with "Spanish-style" wrought iron railings. The internal courtyard, with
a square plan, is surrounded on three sides by a portico with arches
supported by pillars. The main floor is highly decorated with vaults
with golden stucco reliefs, various medallions with mythological
subjects; the smaller room, the dining room, has a fresco of the tales
of Cupid and Psyche. Two wooden doors by Ferdinando Mosca connect the
room with the large ballroom with baroque frescoes of the Judgment of
Paris. Other rooms have tempera paintings with scenes always with a
classical, bucolic and pastoral mythological background. In the master
bedroom of the palace there is a pavilion vault with a central rose
window with vegetal motifs and oval medallions with a married couple
joined by a chain and other aesthetic symbols of married life. Adjacent
is the private library with the adjoining study, with a richly decorated
ceiling.
Palazzo Alicandri - Ciufelli: it belonged to the Zavatta
family of Pacentro at the end of the 1600s, the palace was rebuilt by
them, and then passed to the Granata family, purchased in 1819 by the
priest Don Nicola Ciufelli who left it as a legacy to his niece Rosa
Maria Ciufelli, married in 1811 to Carlantonio Alicandri. From this
moment the family took the name Alicandri-Ciufelli, and the palace was
also called this: a coat of arms of the marital alliance between the two
families is found on the balcony above the entrance. The façade is
entirely plastered, with the exception of the squared stone corners, and
is divided into three levels which are characterized by the different
types of openings and decorations. On the ground floor the arched portal
is framed by Ionic pilasters enriched by mirrors and laterally riveted
with a mumps motif; the brackets that support the balcony branch off
from the architectural ordinance and the keystone of the access arch;
square windows, alternating with portals, punctuate the plan. The views
of the main floor, characterized by the alternation of balconies and
windows, share the elegant motif of stone moldings and the mixtilinear
tympanum with the shell motif.
Palazzo Tabassi da Pescina -
Mazzara: the palace retains its original appearance, with the exception
of the facade on Via Mazara, restored in the 19th century, with the
addition of a monumental entrance portal, in stucco windowsill frames,
of the square windows of the mezzanine floor, and the molded cornice.
The prominent element of the façade is the Durazzesque portal with a
lowered arch, inserted in the rectangular frame which, in correspondence
with the impost line of the arch, folds back on itself. The valuable
interior has the main floor, on the cross vault of the atrium the coat
of arms of the family is painted within a rich frame, and along the left
wall a plaque commemorates the stay of illustrious Englishmen in the
structure, linked to the noble Angelo Maria Scalzitti, journalist and
writer. The internal courtyard has on the right side the access arch to
the steps leading to the upper floors, and higher up a loggia on two
orders, with a pair of arches on the main floor and three small arches
on the one above; the other sides of the courtyard are enlivened by the
presence of Renaissance windows.
Palazzo Mazzara di Porta
Filiamabili: the Mazzara family has been present in Sulmona since 1332,
and is registered in the list of patrician houses registered in 1572.
After 1865 the family is divided into two branches: the Mazara marquises
of Torre de' Passeri and the another linked to the barony of
Schinaforte, who however had numerous residences in the city. The main
front of the building, divided into three orders, is characterized by
the succession of the monumental entrance on the ground floor, the only
balcony on the main floor, and the window on the upper level. The portal
is framed by a pair of pilasters which support a classical style
entablature with triglyphs, surmounted by the balcony brackets, with a
horizontal crowning window, on which the family insignia stands out. The
coat of arms is framed by volutes that act as a connection with the
rectangular window on the upper floor. On the second floor the windows
have horizontally crowned stone displays, while the openings on the main
floor are enriched by kneeling brackets. Through the entrance hall you
access the terrace, connected by steps to the internal garden. On the
vault of the entrance hall stands out the shield with the coat of arms
of the family, from the late 19th century.
Palazzo Pretorio:
dates back to 1490, seat of the City Captain. The building was located
in the heart of the historic centre, in the district of Porta Salvatoris
(Santa Maria village), Fontana del Vecchio, commissioned by Captain
Polidoro Tiberti, and the medieval aqueduct. It seems that Queen Joanna
I of Aragon, having learned that the city was working to build a court
palace, invited the community to contain expenses, to concentrate on the
wool industry. And perhaps this is why the palace has a very austere
appearance. However, little remains of the original work because it was
rebuilt in the 19th century. On 18 June 1863, as the old building was in
precarious conditions, it was demolished and rebuilt, completed in 1914.
The compositional scheme of the original building is known thanks to the
testimony of Augusto Campana on a drawing by Pietro Piccirilli: it had
the main entrance on via Mazara, while the side elevation overlooked the
street. On the upper level there were elegant Renaissance mullioned
windows, and it had an inscription: "By will of the Aragonese sovereigns
the divine Ferdinand King of Sicily and Giovanna his illustrious wife
Sulmona built as the seat of the Captain and the Nobles a palace rather
austere than sumptuous in the year of the birth of Christ 1490". For the
new nineteenth-century construction, the neo-Renaissance language was
chosen, divided into three levels, on the ground floor treated with
smooth ashlar, six portals.
Palazzo Anelli: it is in Piazza
Garibaldi, rebuilt after 1706. In 1844 the palace, named Zampichelli,
became the property of Luigi Anelli-La Rocca. The structure has an
imposing façade divided into three main levels: the ground floor with
shops with lowered stone portals and square windows; the main floor is
surrounded by string-course and window sill frames, on which the
mixtilinear gable windows rest; the second floor where alternating
curved gable windows, broken up with volutes. The facade ends with the
high stone cornice on brackets; the eastern corner which leads onto via
Margherita is underlined by the powerful stone cornerstone which becomes
lighter towards the top, following the step of the stringcourse frames
of the façade overlooking the square. The portal is arched with a key
volute, framed by an order of Tuscan pilasters which support the
architrave surmounted by a Baroque pediment with shell volutes.
Palazzo Meliorati Liberati: the palace was built in the 16th century,
first belonging to the Meliorati family, later to Ludovico Magagnini and
finally definitively to the Liberati family. In light of studies on the
small horse-head shields near the portal frieze, the building's
connection with the papal house of Innocent VII has been dispelled.
Marino Liberati purchased the portal from Gerolamo De Capite in 1563, to
whom he added the two coats of arms. The main facade features a
persistence of late Gothic decorated characters, which are inserted into
a now late Renaissance façade layout. An example can be found in the
decorative treatment of the windows on the main floor, where the sober
sixteenth-century design of the rectilinear crowning openings, framed by
a band order, is embellished with late Gothic lobbing of the intrados of
the arches. The entrances to the ground floor, the windows on the second
floor and the entrance portal are fully sixteenth century. The structure
is organized around an internal courtyard with a portico with a
connecting staircase to the upper floor, and a small lateral loggia with
round arches, on fluted columns of a composite order and a lacunar
intrados with small roses.
Ancient Pelino confetti factory: the
ancient factory has an austere appearance that recalls the Art Nouveau
features, founded by Cavalier Mario Pelino. Today it is home to the
Museum of Confectionery Art and Technology (1988), divided into two
rooms. In the first the room is dedicated to the display of the ancient
machines of the trade for the production of various types of sugared
almonds. The section also concerns the history of the Sulmona sugared
almond, through exhibition panels and memorabilia, together with
portraits of the Pelino family. The second room is a reconstruction of
the typical 18th century processing laboratory, with special tools and
equipment for grinding, toasting and polishing the sweet.
Art
Nouveau building in Piazza Vittorio Veneto: it was built in the first
decade of the twentieth century. It is characterized by an elegant
façade layout, played on the overlapping of four horizontal sectors,
superimposed and treated with different materials, decorations and
colours. The band of the gray stone base, which houses the openings of
the rooms, is counterpointed by the light plaster masonry, with
horizontal elements, which is interrupted at the height of the lowered
arches of the windows and portals of the ground floor, to leave room for
the portion of the façade, finished with ocher plaster, in which there
are slender double-lancet windows with a lowered arch, corresponding to
the balconies, and single-lancet windows in a smaller scale version of
the first. The cornice, supported by elaborate concrete shelves
decorated with imitation wood, and the shutter line of the windows on
the main floor, runs an elegant band decorated with vegetal and
geometric motifs in light tones.
According to some sources, an aqueduct was already present in Roman
times. The Swabian Aqueduct was built in the 13th century by Manfredi,
son of Frederick II of Swabia, to create a canal in the city center for
the transport of aquifer from the Pacentro mountain to the Pratola
Peligna plain. It was resized in the 17th century and cut in 1706 with
the serious earthquake. Today the aqueduct is located in the western
part of Piazza Garibaldi, delimiting its border with Corso Ovidio.
It has round arches in white Maiella stone; it is composed of three
sections: the first 76 meters long with 15 Gothic arches, the second 24
meters with 5 arches, and the last piece which has a single round arch
4.92 meters long. The overall height difference between the first and
last point of the aqueduct is 106 meters in length, for a total of 10
meters of height difference.
Traffic flows through it with
limited passage so as not to damage the structure. On one side there is
a commemorative plaque for a car accident on 3 June 1979, when some
young fans away at Cassino died after hitting their heads which were
protruding from the windows of the bus.
Porta Romana (1428): the first mention in the land registry is from
1376, it was subsequently called Porta San Matteo, because it was close
to the ruins of the church of the same name outside the walls. The
definitive restoration still visible today dates back to 1429, as
attested by the inscription, where there is a shield with the initial M.
It is probably Meo de Buzu, a citizen who lived at that time, who had it
restored. The gate is the only one to have a round arch, and is part of
the first fourteenth-century city wall; the arch is supported by sturdy
pillars that end towards the impost with a molded frame that wraps the
two façades, interrupting at the portcullis closure. The damage was
probably due to the 1706 earthquake.
porta Napoli (1338): Built in
the early 14th century as Porta Nova, it has kept its rectangular
structure intact, even if it lost the battlements at the top with the
earthquake of 1706. The decoration of the front is divided into rustic
ashlar marked at the bottom and attenuated towards the top; in the last
five sides small central rosettes appear, which flatten because more
regular ashlars appear under the ashlar string course. Aligned with the
door, there is a window that was originally a mullioned window, with
motifs similar to small rosettes; there are reliefs with a hunting scene
on the left, and a sacrifice on the right: they act as brackets for the
piers from which the pointed arch rises. Next to it is the central
Gothic window with Angevin coats of arms underneath; the decoration is
completed by sculpted capitals and little lions from other disappeared
monuments, placed at the end of the frame. On the façade overlooking the
street there is an icon of the Madonna and Child, recovered from a
destroyed church, dating back to 1338
porta Pacentrana (1376): also
called "porta Orientis", restored in 1376, is located on the eastern
side where you reach it from Pacentro. The plastered external facade is
painted with a pattern of perspective cubes in shades of brick color on
a white background, arranged in a herringbone pattern. The pointed arch
is set on simple molded frames. The support piers, especially the one on
the left, do not seem to match the impost frames, since the door
underwent alterations. Above the arch key is a chiselled stone heraldic
shield, which is difficult to read. On the sides there are sections of
the city wall.
Porta S. Antonio (18th century): replaced the old
Filiamabili gate in the 14th century, included in the first enclosure.
Before being named after Saint Anthony of Padua it was known as the
"gate of the Goats", and in the seventeenth century "gate of the
Crucifix". The upper part for the accommodation of the guards, when it
fell into disuse, was used as a private house. In a decurional document
from 1816 it is clear that Domenico Granata, manager of the city paper
mill outside the walls, had converted the upper part of the door into a
dwelling, also hanging the coat of arms of his family on the arch. The
external pointed arch dates back to the end of the thirteenth century,
while that of the internal façade is later, made with less valuable
material. Both arches are lowered by lunettes, and the outside one
features a Renaissance fresco of Saint Anthony of Padua.
Porta
Filiamabili (14th century): the gate is located near the south-western
corner of the first city wall in via Manlio d'Eramo, the only one
perfectly preserved without tampering over the centuries. It was only
strengthened when the second gate of Sant'Antonio was built, located at
the base of the access ramp in the larger wall enclosure. The first
mention of the gate dates back to 1196, and the name comes from a canon:
Amabile de' fili Amabili, probably the financier of a restoration. The
door was in fact renamed "Filiorum Amabilis" and then in Italian
Filiamabili. The current structures of the gate are fourteenth century;
the external front is characterized by the stone ashlar facing, which
reaches the top of the pointed arch of the external front. The arch is
decorated with a molded frame, and is set on molded brackets, supported
by sturdy squared stone piers. The opening of the internal facade is
plastered, and follows the profile of the curve of the barrel vault,
which covers the passage and supports the body above.
Japasseri gate
(14th-15th century), the imposing lateral foundations of the gate
remain.
Porta Bonomini (15th - 18th century): the name is the
Italianization of Johannis Bonorum Hominum, a character who provided for
its reconstruction during the Middle Ages. The passage opens to the
north-west of the ancient wall enclosure, on the corner opposite Porta
Iapasseri. The first construction dates back to the early Middle Ages,
restored in Gothic style in the fourteenth century. Today the door
unfortunately retains the stone base piers, which date back to a
restoration in 1708, immediately after the serious earthquake, which
destroyed the upper part of the pointed arch. It was replaced by a
wooden architrave, removed in the 1980s because it was dilapidated.
Santa Maria della Tomba door (15th-16th century): dates back to around
the 14th century, although today it appears in seventeenth-century
forms: it has a round arch, infilled by a lunette frescoed with the
Deposition, the work of the painter Vincenzo Conti (1808) . The
insertion of the lunette transformed the original arched structure into
a rectangular one, made up of stone block piers ending in support
brackets and a wooden architrave. It opens along the second stretch of
the city wall, right near the road that runs alongside the church from
which the gate takes its name.
Porta Saccoccia (15th century): the
gate opens along the eastern stretch of the second city wall, which
between the end of the 13th and 14th centuries extended the perimeter of
the town. In 1755 a coat of arms was affixed to the door, which was
opened after the earthquake of 1706. However, the door already existed
as a secondary entrance in the Middle Ages; the nickname Saccoccia dates
back to the 16th century, when the area of the district was dominated by
the family. The door consists of a segmental arch, supported by piers,
made of squared stone blocks. The right-hand abutment is heavily
bevelled, protected by concrete. Inside the arch from above the wooden
supports of the hinges remain, and it has an eighteenth-century
appearance. The coat of arms of a sheep bears the date 1755 with the
name of Pietro Antonio Pecorillo.
Porta Molina (13th century): it was
a second access to the district, existing since 1168, as reported in the
Chronicon of Casauria. For the first time it was defined as "mill" by
the presbyter Giovanni Ardengi, although in the 13th century it was
called "porta Sant'Andrea" because of the nearby church which has now
disappeared. This church was called Sant'Andrea Intus, subsequently
destroyed in 1706. The door, however, has been perfectly preserved,
having been restored, and has a round arch in tanned stone, without
impost brackets and with the wooden doors in situ. Inside it is preceded
by a barrel vault of greater height, connected to the door by means of a
lunette.
Fonte Sant'Agata: it is located near the church of San
Filippo, and has medieval origins. But it was rebuilt in the 16th
century by Lombard workers, decorated with the city coat of arms and
that of the Lannoy family, the princes of Sulmona. The stone basin is
decorated with a bas-relief with the two coats of arms on the extreme
sides, flanked by two panels with Romanesque-style floral motifs. Below
these there are three masks with human and faunal shapes that show the
spouts from their mouths.
Fontana del Vecchio: it is located along
Corso Ovidio, connected to the end of the medieval aqueduct, which makes
it among the most famous and appreciated historical fountains in
Sulmona. The fountain existed before 1474, when Captain Polidoro Tiberti
had it restored according to Renaissance taste. Although modified in the
lower part in 1901, since the simple square basin was replaced by a much
more decorated sarcophagus, with pod motifs, the monument is quite
preserved in its original appearance. The fountain is composed of the
basin leaning against the wall of the aqueduct, and the monument carved
on the wall itself, with the mask with anthropomorphic shapes, very
similar to a faun, hence the name "old", flanked by two lateral
rosettes, and by a monumental frame with two putti holding the civic
coat of arms. The coat of arms is located in a deep Renaissance-style
lunette, and various reliefs are the Aragonese crowning within a garland
of flowers and fruits, supported by little angels, with the bearded head
of the faun acting as an acroterial. One tradition identifies the old
man with the mythical founder of Sulmona: Solimo, one of the friends of
the Trojan hero Aeneas, while others say that it would be a heraldic
representation of the noble de' Vecchis family.
Monumental fountain
in Piazza Garibaldi: it is one of the most famous fountains in the city,
located in the center of Piazza Maggiore, created for the refreshment of
traders and commoners. In 1821 there was a first municipal project, with
the work entrusted to Felice di Cicco from Pescola, who proposed using
the stone from the square, and it was completed in 1823. The fountain is
organized on an octagonal basin of 3.20 m diameter, in the center of
which stands a tufaceous cliff that supports the trunk of a column
decorated with a motif of large leaves in caulicles. On the stem of the
latter rests a large basin, surmounted by a smaller one, always
supported by a column. The entire structure originally rested on a base
of three sloping, creased steps. In 1933, during the repaving of the
square, the second octagonal basin was built.
Source of Porta
Iapasseri: located at the foot of the north-eastern section of the
former city walls, it already existed before 1600, given that it was
restored at that time, with the addition of two lateral basins used as
drinking troughs. It is a large trough that collected spring water from
a spring located near the church of Santa Maria della Potenza (now
disappeared). The tanning stone fountain is based on the motif of three
blind round arches with a molded profile: the central one rests on
corbels; the two smaller lateral ones stand laterally on powerful piers
with a square base. The coats of arms of Sulmona are placed in the three
lunettes, on the two sides and in the center that of the marital
alliance of Prince Philip II Lannoy and his wife Porzia Guevara. The
cinnamon masks are anthropomorphic, and date back to the Middle Ages.
Monumental fountain of the Santissima Annunziata: it is located in the
churchyard of the basilica of the same name, dated 1847, although due to
an inscription it is believed that the source has older origins, at
least the 18th century, when the common people requested an extension of
the waters of the Fountain of Old up to the Annunziata area. The
fountain stands on a ring-shaped stone base, with two steps on which the
circular basin is housed, with an inverted throat profile, and decorated
with pods; a central stem with grooves with vegetal elements supports a
smaller basin, with the same ornamental motif.
Source of Santa Maria
di Roncesvalle: it is located near the small church of the same name,
among the oldest in the city, along the Celano-Foggia sheep track.
Although the fountain is dated 1376, it perhaps has more remote, if not
even Roman, origins: it has late sixteenth-century shapes, with a simple
wall-type structure and horizontal crown. The facing is made of squared
stone and has four jet masks with an anthropomorphic appearance.
Fountain of Fonte d'Amore: located at the foot of Monte Morrone, near
the Abbey of Santo Spirito, the fountain would have connections with the
poet Ovid, since the same commemorative plaque reports Sulmo mihi patria
est, gelidis uberrimus undis milia qui novies distat ab Urbem decem
(Tristia, IV), and since the poet in the Amores refers to his love for
Corinna from Sulmont. Inserted in a small clearing with paved paving,
the fountain has a simple structure, consisting of a rectangular wall in
squared stone framed. The water flows from the pipes of two lateral
rosettes, as well as from a very large slit in the center.
Statue of Publio Ovidio Nasone: it is located in Piazza XX Settembre,
and was built since 1857 to celebrate the poet from Sulmona. The
project, however, dragged on for several years until its inauguration on
20 April 1925. The monument was created by the Roman sculptor Ettore
Ferrari, and shows a marble pillar with bronze sculptures in relief, the
dedication to the poet and some Latin verses dedicated to the city.
Above the pedestal stands the statue in classical bronze forms,
representing the thoughtful poet, with a book clutched in his left hand,
resting under the elbow of his right hand with which he supports his
cheek, in the act of meditating.
Monument to Celestine V: it is
located on Corso Ovidio south, from Piazza Garibaldi, and represents the
hermit depicted as an elderly traveller, sitting on a trunk, with
animals at his feet, and a pilgrim's staff.
War memorial: located
near the entrance to the course from the villa. Also known as the "Cippo
di Carlo Tresca", dedicated to the anti-fascist anarchist from Sulmona,
murdered in 1943. The large marble memorial stone has a quadrangular
plan, the linearity of which is broken by a stringcourse frame towards
the top. On each side there are bronze laurel wreaths, while on the main
side there is a bronze bas-relief of a reclining man, with the goddess
Victoria next to him. In fact, the monument was also built to celebrate
the Sulmona fallen in the First World War, so it was built after 1918,
during the fascist period, with classic shapes.
Monument to Benedict
XVI: it was created in 2016 on the occasion of the pastoral visit of
Pope Benedict XVI in 2010, strongly desired by the bishop Monsignor
Angelo Spina. Made of bronze, it is located behind the cathedral of San
Panfilo, in a small flowerbed, and depicts the pontiff in the act of
blessing.
Monument to the railway worker: it is located at the
railway station and is an ancient steam locomotive with a commemorative
plaque, in memory of the railway workers who died during the bombing of
the city on 30 August 1943.
It is located in the locality of the same name, and represents one of the largest war prison camps in Abruzzo, as well as one of the best preserved. During the German occupation, Sulmona took on an important role for the mobility of troops and war materials, due to the railway hub of the four lines direct to Rome (via Avezzano), Pescara, Naples (via Castel di Sangro), and Terni ( via L'Aquila). A short distance away in Pratola Peligna there was a factory used as a powder magazine for the manufacture of ammunition, and this proved to be a good center for the quartering of troops, and subsequently for the capture of political prisoners, and of enemy combatants to be interned in labor camps, given the harshness of the Morrone territory.
Sanctuary of Ercole Curino: it is located on the slopes of Monte
Morrone, under the hermitage of Sant'Onofrio. The cult of Hercules among
the Peligni was already widespread in the 5th century BC, and the
original temple probably dates back to this period, expanded in the 2nd
century BC, and transformed during Roman rule into a true sanctuary,
following the canons of the matrix Hellenistic-Roman. In the 2nd century
AD an earthquake caused a landslide which caused the filling structures
to collapse, although the site continued to be frequented, above all as
a quarry for material for the construction of churches. The structure is
organized on two levels with artificial terraces, after the excavations
and restorations carried out in 1957. The lower base is made up of a
substructure wall in opus reticulatum, with a square with 14 vaulted
rooms, evidently service rooms, except the the last room, used as a
porticoed entrance to the sanctuary. On the upper steps there was a
small donation and a stone fountain, where the faithful purified before
entering the temple. Polychrome mosaic wall decorations are preserved,
with decorative elements typical of the Hellenistic repertoire, plants,
dolphins, sea waves, lightning, with reference to Jupiter. There is an
inscription of a restoration commissioned by the former praetorian Gaius
Settimo Pompilius. Remarkable was the discovery of the sculpture of
Heracles at rest, preserved in the archaeological museum of Chieti.
Roman Domus: located in the civic museum of the Santissima Annunziata.
It was discovered in 1991, and dates back to the 2nd century AD: the
environment is identified around the best preserved space of the
impluvium, above which the medieval structures were built. Noteworthy
are the frescoes of the third Pompeian style, portraying the Hierogamia
between Dionysus and Ariadne, and the dispute between Eros and Pan. This
domus was included in the archaeological section of the civic museums.
Corso Ovidio (main artery of the historic center), accessible from
the villa or from Porta Napoli, with the monuments of Piazza Garibaldi,
Piazza XX Settembre with the statue of Ovid, the Piazzetta
dell'Annunziata and the widening of the villa.
Piazza XX Settembre,
the main feature is the monument to Ovid, the palace of the "gran caffè"
and the historic sugared almond shops.
Piazza Garibaldi (Piazza
Maggiore), characterized by a rectangular plan, with a segment of the
medieval aqueduct and a monumental fountain on the opposite side,
crowned by the churches of San Filippo Neri and San Rocco.
Piazza
Carlo Tresca is located at the entrance to the villa, adorned by the
commemorative monument.
Piazza Plebiscito, a small square
characterized by the church of Santa Maria della Tomba.
Piazza Duomo,
the cathedral square, diminished in area by the construction of the
municipal villa.
Piazza Giuseppe Capograssi, a modern square, with
the seat of the court and prosecutor's office, represented by the church
of Cristo Re.
Municipal Villa: it constitutes a large portion of the city centre,
which starts from the south at the mouth of Corso Ovidio on Piazzale
Carlo Tresca, up to the churchyard of the San Panfilo cathedral. With
the municipal resolution of 4 May 1867 the project of building a leisure
and walking area was implemented; the area was leveled, reclaimed,
embellished with fountains, garden plants and the construction of an
orchestra for the band's public concerts. Especially, before its
removal, the orchestra performed during the feast of the patron saint
San Panfilo. In the early 1900s the area became one of the focal points
of Sulmona's social life, and the Pallozzi stadium was built nearby.
After the war the area was surrounded by buildings built during the
economic boom, without however altering its harmony. The garden was
created by Luigi Rovelli, having an elongated rectangular geometric
shape, which extends for 800 meters, from Piazzale Tresca to the
cathedral. In a symmetrical position inside there are two circular fish
pond fountains with the central column in tuff.
Augusto Daolio river
park: it is located along the slopes of the Vella river around the
historic center. Formerly covered by cultivated land and the original
poplar grove vegetation, the area remained unused for a long time until
the river park project was completed, inaugurated in 1999. The park is
multi-purpose, for children's games, for walks and for excursions, as
well as having an amphitheater for shows.
Procession of the Dead Christ. Good Friday.
"Madonna escaping", in
the square. Easter Sunday.
Holy Week. The Holy Week rites in Sulmona
are the most evocative in Abruzzo, known both in Italy and abroad. Their
origin documentedly dates back to the Middle Ages (even if, in their
current form, they only date back to the 17th or 18th century) and are
organized by the most important city brotherhoods: the Archconfraternity
of the Trinity (based in the church of the same name along Corso Ovidio)
and the Confraternity of Santa Maria di Loreto (based in the church of
Santa Maria della Tomba). The members of the two associations are called
Trinitari and Lauretani respectively; in Sulmona they are also popularly
called red (the Trinitarians, for their red tunic) and green (the
Lauretani, for the color of their mozzetta).
Fire Festival, in Piazza
Maggiore. Mid-April. On the anniversary of San Giuseppe, late in the
evening, the various districts of the city light enormous piles of wood
in Piazza Garibaldi, giving life to an evocative show, surrounded by
typical songs and dances. In recent editions there are also some stands
with typical local products.
Certamen Ovidianum Sulmonense. in April.
International Latin competition reserved for classical high school
students organized by the "Ovidio" Classical High School and the "Amici
del Certamen Ovidianum" Association.
The Path of Freedom. End of
April. March reminiscent of the adventurous path which, in the years of
German occupation, crossed the Maiella, the Gustav Line and reached the
lands liberated by the Allies.
Fair of the Assumption and popular
festivals. July August.
Chivalric Joust, Piazza Maggiore (Piazza
Garibaldi). Last weekend of July. It was a Renaissance event that was
held twice a year (in April and on August 15th) and consisted of three
assaults on the lance, carried out against a human target (the so-called
"maintainer") by a knight equipped with a lance with white paint on the
tip . The score was assigned by a "master juror" who declared the winner
based on the part of the body affected and any blood loss.
The event
has been re-enacted since July 1995 and sees the participation of the
four districts and the three villages into which the city territory has
been divided. The horses race around a full oval and then a figure eight
in about 30 seconds and the riders have to hit rings. The race is
followed by a historical procession, the captains' challenge and outdoor
dinners in the villages and districts.
Chivalric Joust of the Most
Beautiful Villages in Italy and Chivalric Joust of Europe. Beginning of
August.
Summercelestiniana, Hermitage of S.Onofrio. in August.
Sulmona Rock Festival, Hermitage of S.Onofrio. The end of August.
Sulmona Award for Contemporary Art, Cloister of the former Convent of
Santa Chiara. September.
Sulmona Prize for journalism and art
criticism, Cloister of the former Convent of Santa Chiara. September.
"Maria Caniglia" International Opera Singing Competition. September.
International Piano Competition "Città di Sulmona". October.
Concert
season of the Camerata Musicale Sulmonese. From October to April.
Sulmonacinema Film Festival. November. Festival of young Italian cinema
in competition
National Award "A day together - Augusto Daolio - City
of Sulmona". December. for emerging singer-songwriters and groups
(organized by the cultural association Premio Augusto Daolio in
collaboration with the Nomadi fans club "Un giorno Insieme").
By plane
Pescara Airport (Abruzzo International Airport), Via
Tiburtina Km 229.100, ☎ +39 085 4324201.
By car
A25 Pratola
Peligna-Sulmona motorway exit on the Rome-Pescara motorway
State road
17 of the Abruzzo Apennines and Appulo Sannitica
State road 479
Sannita
State road 487 of Caramanico Terme
On the train
Railway station, Civil War Victims square. The city station is the
second most important railway hub in Abruzzo after that of Pescara and
is located on the railway lines:
Rome–Pescara
Terni-L'Aquila-Sulmona
Sulmona–Isernia. edit
By bus
Bus
lines managed by ARPA - Regional Public Buses of Abruzzo
The ancient writers, including Ovid and Silio Italico, agree on the
remote origin of Sulmona, which can be linked to the destruction of
Troy. The name of the city in fact derives from Solimos (in ancient
Greek: Σωλυμος?, Sōlymos), one of Aeneas' companions.
The first
historical information, however, comes to us from Tito Livio who quotes
the Italic oppidum and narrates how the city, despite the lost battles
of Trasimeno and Cannae, remained faithful to Rome by closing its doors
to Hannibal.
On the heights of Mount Mitra there is
archaeological evidence of the oppidum; it is an area located higher
than the current site of the city, which only assumed this position in
the Roman period.
During the Roman era, Sulmona (then known as Sulmo) was the seat of
one of the three Peligni municipalities together with Corfinium and
Superaequum. In 81 BC we have the second event narrated by historians,
namely the destruction of the city by Sulla, following the rebellion to
obtain the full application of the Lex Cornelia de Suffragiis.
After thirty-two years, however, there was a rebirth, with the
establishment of a Pompeian garrison, which had to surrender, due to yet
another revolt of the Sulmona people, to Mark Anthony, sent by Caesar.
The most important historical date for Sulmona is 43 BC, the year of
birth of the illustrious Latin poet Publius Ovidius Naso, the singer of
love and the Metamorphoses, later relegated to Tomi, in Romania, by the
emperor Augustus (the relegatio unlike of the exilium did not lead to
the loss of Roman citizenship and consequent rights nor did it lead to
the confiscation of assets).
From the initials of the famous
Ovidian hemistich Sulmo Mihi Patria Est, the city took the letters
contained in its coat of arms, 'SMPE'. Ovid writes: "Sulmo mihi patria
est, gelidis uberrimus undis, milia qui novies distat ab Vrbe decem"
(Ovidius, Tristia IV, 10 - verses 3-4), "Sulmona is my homeland, very
rich in icy waters, which is nine times ten miles from Rome". And again:
"Pars me Sulmo tenet Paeligni tertia ruris parva, sed inriguis ora
salubris aquis. ... arva pererrantur Paeligna liquentibus undis ...
terra ferax Cereris multoque feracior uvis" "I am in Sulmona, third
department of the Peligna countryside, small land but healthy for the
waters that irrigate it... clear waters flow in the fields of Peligno...
Land fertile with wheat and much more fertile with grapes" (Amores II,
16). It was the spring waters of the Gizio river.
Traces of Roman
Sulmona have resurfaced from the excavations in the temple of Ercole
Curino, located at the foot of Mount Morrone where, according to an
ancient legend, there are the remains of Ovid's villa. The research
brought to light a bronze copy representing Hercules at rest, now kept
in the National Archaeological Museum of Abruzzo, in Chieti. It is a
small bronze, a gift from a merchant, dating back to around the 3rd
century BC, representing the hero leaning with his left arm on the club
from which a lion's skin hangs: it is considered one of the masterpieces
of small ancient sculpture. In addition to the Hercules, architectural
materials and votive images were found.
Tradition establishes the advent of Christianity in the 3rd century:
initially the Pelligno territory was made up of a single large diocese,
that of Valva, to which that of Sulmona was added, after controversies
born with the chapter of Corfinio. However, the first news of a bishop
from Sulmona dates back to the 5th century. The Swabian dynasty acted in
support of Sulmona, forcing the bishop to place his seat within the city
walls.
During the reign of Frederick II, exceptional civil works
were built, such as the medieval aqueduct, one of the most important
monuments of the time in Abruzzo.
From a political point of view,
Sulmona became a municipality under the Normans and, united with
Marsica, constituted a single large province. Frederick II, thanks to
the statutes of Melfi, promoted the city to the capital and seat of the
curia of one of the large provinces into which he divided the
continental part of the kingdom. Finally, Sulmona was the seat of the
judiciary and of a canon law office equivalent to that of Naples.
Furthermore, the provision according to which of the seven annual fairs
held in seven cities of the kingdom, the first took place in Sulmona
("primae nundinae erunt apud Sulmonam") from 23 April to 8 May was very
important.
At the end of the 13th century, Sulmona closely
followed the story of the resigning pope Fra Pietro da Morrone, better
known as Pope Celestine V. In addition to the best-known story, we must
remember the establishment in Sulmona of the monastic congregation of
the hermits of San Damiano, then called Celestines. The cell of
Celestine V can still be visited in the nearby Hermitage of Sant'Onofrio
al Morrone, close to which the disappeared town of Sagizzano once stood.
In the 14th century Sulmona had its own Mint and minted coins which
bore on the obverse the initials of Ovid's motto S M P E (Sulmo mihi
patria est), each inserted within a quarter of the field divided by a
cross, while on the reverse they bore the image of Pietro da Morrone in
papal robes.
The fall of the Swabians led to the advent of the Angevins, who
fiercely opposed the city, not forgiving its loyalty to Frederick II and
its subsequent support for the young Corradino of Swabia. Thus Sulmona
was deprived of the execution and then of the faculty of canon law.
Despite everything, in the 14th century the city tripled its surface
area and surrounded itself with a second circle of walls and six gates.
Also in this century the Palazzo dell'Annunziata was built, first an
asylum for orphans, then a hospital and today one of the symbols of the
city.
During the 16th century, the Sulmonese Goldsmith School was
born, whose artefacts bore the SUL brand. The paper industry was born
and various factories were established along the Gizio river. Trade also
had a notable growth, thanks to the market of precious fabrics
(Sermontina silk). Furthermore, the bell tower of the Annunziata was
raised which is still the tallest building in the city today, with its
65.5 metres. Finally, at the end of the century, the art of printing was
introduced, thanks to the Ovidian scholar and scholar Ercole Ciofano.
Ovid's works were edited and the chapters of the joust of chivalry were
published.
In 1610, after having been held for the entire 16th century
(1526-1600) by the De Lannoy family, who followed Charles V who gave it
to them with the title of principality, the city was once again
enfeoffed with a princely title to Marcantonio II Borghese nephew of
Pope Paul V by King Philip III of Spain. In 1656 the knightly joust
which was held twice a year was abandoned due to the lack and lack of
application of the knights, as well as the terrible plague: the event
was reborn in 1995.
But the seventeenth century was also the
century in which the churches of Sulmona were equipped with
Italian-style organs by local organ builders, including Marino and
Vincenzo da Sulmona, who created the organ of the Gregorian chapel in
San Pietro in Rome. On November 3, 1706, three years after that of
L'Aquila, a disastrous earthquake occurred which destroyed the entire
city and awakened the citizens. It was around 1pm. The deaths were over
a thousand (over 1/4 of the population).
There was much damage:
the cathedral was semi-ruined (with ruin of the frescoes, collapse of
the vaults and roof, damage to the façade and apse); all the ancient
churches remained ruined, some of which were no longer rebuilt, the city
gates were ruined, sections of walls fell to the ground, some arches of
the medieval aqueduct collapsed. Little remained of the palaces and
churches that Sulmona boasted.
The nineteenth century marked a new period of rebirth, in which the Sulmona railway hub, thanks to its strategic position, had notable development and with it there was an equal economic and demographic growth. In 1889 another great personality of the city was born, Giuseppe Capograssi, a distinguished scholar of legal philosophy.
The twentieth century was characterized by periods of alternating
fortunes, among which it is worth mentioning the construction of the
municipal theater in 1933, the reconstruction of the historic Cinema
Pacifico and the various stages of the Tour of Italy.
During the
Second World War Sulmona suffered very serious damage and, given its
position close to the Gustav Line, saw the depopulation of the entire
southern area (from the western Maiella to the upper Sangro area). The
city was bombed on 27 August 1943 as it was a strategic road and railway
hub. The railway station was hit just before midday by the
Anglo-Americans with 69 B17 planes, the famous "flying fortresses", and
by as many Liberators. There will be around a hundred deaths (men,
women, children) and a thousand injured. The other target was the
"Dinamitificio Nobel" industrial plant which produced explosive
materials and employed three thousand workers. Despite all the
adversities, the first signs of rebirth were seen starting from the
visit of the first President of the Republic Enrico De Nicola in
November 1946. Furthermore, the State Archives, stolen by the fascist
regime in revenge for a popular revolt of 1929, were reconstituted.
The municipality of Sulmona is among the cities decorated for
Military Valor for the War of Liberation as it was awarded the Silver
Medal for Military Valor for the sacrifices of its populations and for
its activity in the partisan struggle during the Second World War.
During the second half of the twentieth century, the proposal was
put forward to make Sulmona the capital of a new province, but the
project did not come to fruition. Furthermore, the city was stripped of
institutions that contributed to its wealth, such as the Military
district. Protest riots arose, remembered as the Jamm' mò riots,
culminating in the days of 2 and 3 February 1957.
Sulmona rises in the center of the Peligna Valley,
between the Vella torrent and the Gizio river, to the west of the
Majella and Morrone mountains, which overlook the city.
The
territory of the Peligna Valley, whose name derives from the Greek
peline = "muddy, slimy", in prehistoric times was occupied by a vast
lake. Following disastrous earthquakes, the rock barrier that
obstructed the passage of water to the sea collapsed; on the other
hand, the soil remained fertile.
Located in the
Maiella seismic district, Sulmona was severely hit by the earthquake
of November 3, 1706 (also called the Sulmona earthquake) which
caused enormous destruction, the loss of much of the ancient
artistic heritage and the death of a thousand citizens.
Seismic classification: zone 1 (high seismicity)
The city is far from the sea (about 60 km) so that summers are hot
and often torrid, as it lacks the beneficial influence of the sea
breeze. The July isotherm, 24.7 ° C, hides maximum values
sometimes even as high as 41.7 ° C (30 July 2005) and repeated 40
° C (2003-2006-2007-2011). The spring and summer thunderstorms,
although not frequent due to the conformation of the Peligna Valley,
can be of moderate intensity, and are rarely accompanied by hail.
Winters are much more severe than the altimetric values might
suggest: in fact, in the coldest month, January, the thermometer
reaches average values of about 3.9 ° C. The prevailing winds come
from the western quadrants: during the warm period mainly from SW in
the morning, N-NW in the evening; in the cold period from S in the
morning, from W-NW in the evening, obviously with variations
following the atmospheric conditions of Central Italy.
The
climate is basically continental, with a possible very high
temperature range between day and night (even 25 ° C). The
perturbations, coming from both the West and the East, are often
stopped by the reliefs, thus bringing scarce quantities of rain.
Precipitation is therefore much lower than the altitude would
suggest: just think that the city, despite being at about 400 m asl,
has rainfall values (scarce 600 mm) equal to just over half of
those recorded in Chieti , which benefiting from the humid winds of
marine origin, records values of about 1000 mm, despite being
located at 330 m asl, an altitude therefore lower than that of the
capital Peligno.
It should be noted that the valley, on the
one hand, is protected by all its mountains, but for the same reason
it can be very sultry in the hottest periods and very humid in the
rainy periods. Frost and snow are frequent in winter, as occurred in
January 2002-2005, and in December 2007.
From a legislative
point of view, the municipality of Sulmona falls into the Climatic
Band D since the city degrees per day are 2038, therefore the
maximum limit allowed for switching on the heating is 12 hours a day
from November 1st to April 15th.