Teano. Glimpses

2021

Teano, the ancient Teanum Sidicinum, well known as the site of the historic meeting between Vittorio Emanuele II and Garibaldi in 1860, is located at the foot of the Roccamonfina volcanic group in the province of Caserta, has a rich monumental heritage, great environmental value and numerous ancients. Inhabited by the populations of the Aurunci and Sidicini, of Samnite origin and perhaps occasional cause of the outbreak of the first Samnite war in 343 BC, it has returned some of the first four documents in Italian vernacular, just after the middle of the tenth century, the "papers of Teano". The city was the birthplace of Antonello Petrucci one of the leaders of the so-called fifteenth-century Conjugation of the Barons and owner of a palace in Naples located in Piazza San Domenico Maggiore, next to the entrance to the church of the same name. The ancient Teanum occupied the place of the current city while the thermal baths and the amphitheater fell outside the walls, had an irregular perimeter and an area of about 7 and a half hectares.

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Roccamonfina. Sanctuary of the Madonna dei Lattani.

Roccamonfina. Sanctuary of the Madonna dei Lattani. It is located on the Monte dei Lattani, 850 m. above sea level, one of the many craters of the vast volcanic area of Roccamonfina.

Matese Regional Park - Miralago

The Matese regional park is a protected natural area in Campania. Established with regional law n. 33 of 1993 came into operation only in 2002. The park covers an area of 33,326.53 hectares. The Matese park was established with the Campania regional law n. 33 of 1 September 1993 entitled "Establishment of parks and nature reserves in Campania". Due to the lack of approval of the implementing rules of regional law n. 33 of 1993, the park came into operation only in 2002. The reference standard is the resolution of the Campania Regional Council no. 1407 of 12 April 2002. Since 2006, the Matese Regional Park Authority has been based in San Potito Sannitico, in the province of Caserta. The park's first president was Giuseppe Scialla, a university professor and environmentalist. Following the revision of the Italian budget law 2018, the rule was approved that contemplates the future transformation of the Matese park into a national park, with probable involvement of the provinces of Isernia and Campobasso. The territory of the park mainly includes the Matese mountain massif. The highest mountains, of limestone nature, are Mount Mutria, Mount Gallinola and Mount Miletto. The park takes its name from the Matese lake. Another important lake is that of Letino. The park is crossed by two important rivers: the Titerno river and the Tammaro river. The vegetation of the Matese massif is made up, in the lower area, of holm oaks, hornbeams, strawberry trees and other elements typical of the Mediterranean scrub; as you go up, these species are first replaced by Turkey oak and chestnut and by majestic and imposing beech trees. Here and there you can find wild rowan, maple, dogwood, ash, ash and silver fir. Among the numerous herbaceous plants of the clearings and the undergrowth we note the gentian, the foxglove and above all the omnipresent Sambucus ebulus, the most characteristic plant that accompanies the beech forest in the most open and luminous open spaces. The fauna of the massif is also very rich due to the presence of the three lakes (del Matese, di Gallo, di Letino). In addition to the typical species of the broad-leaved forest (fox, marmot, badger, dormouse, great spotted woodpecker, tordella, jay, owl) there are also species of more open environments, such as hare and wild boar, or bare rocky crags such as the black redstart and the rare rock partridge. Among the exceptional presences we find the golden eagle that nests in the steep rocky walls of Valle dell'Inferno, but above all that of the wolf, regularly sighted in the municipalities of Letino and Gallo Matese. The presence of the lakes also favors the settlement of coots and ducks, herons and even storks. In the waters of these reservoirs we find carp, tench, perch, eel and pike, the three last species introduced by man.

The Sanctuary of Montevergine (AV)

The sanctuary of Montevergine is a Marian monastic complex of Mercogliano, located in the hamlet of Montevergine: it is a national monument. The territorial abbey of Montevergine is one of the six Italian territorial abbeys. Inside the painting of the Madonna di Montevergine is venerated and it is estimated that every year it is visited by about one and a half million pilgrims.

Teano. The Dome. Exteriors

The cathedral, originally dedicated to San Terenziano, was later named after San Clemente. Construction began in 1050 by Bishop Guglielmo, to replace the old cathedral of San Paride ad Fontem, located outside the city walls. The works were completed in 1116 by Bishop Pandulfo. The building has a basilica structure divided into three naves by two rows of columns. In 1608 it was damaged internally by a fire that almost completely destroyed the cosmates ambo, subsequently recomposed using the remains of the previous one integrated with the marble slabs of a fourteenth-century sepulchral monument already present in the church and positioned on twisted columns, two of which rested on fountain lions. During the 16th century the Romanesque apse was modified and on that occasion a precious carved wooden choir was built in the presbytery, built in 1539 by the Benedictine Antonio Maria Sertorio. The choir underwent two restorations, the first in the 17th century and the second in 1957, following the damage suffered during the Second World War.

Teano. Church of Santa Reparata

Sessa Aurunca (CE), the Cathedral

Construction was begun by probable workers of the Casauriense school (see portico of the abbey of S. Clemente a Casauria built between 1176 and 1180) in 1113, partly reusing materials from ancient Roman buildings, and consecrated in 1183; the current external appearance was achieved in the first half of the thirteenth century with the addition of the portico and the large window placed in the upper part of the facade. The interior, on the other hand, having eliminated the trussed ceiling already in the thirteenth century, remained Romanesque until the mid-eighteenth century when the bishop Francesco Caracciolo d'Altamura decided to modernize it according to the tastes and style of the time, namely the Baroque. In July 1929, Pope Pius XI elevated it to the dignity of a minor basilica.

Teano. Church of S. Antonio Abate

Dating back to the 14th century, the Church is made up of a single rectangular nave and a semicircular apse, the latter frescoed with episodes from the life of the Saint.

Teano. Church of San Paride ad Fontem

The building of S. Paride is a church with a basilica structure with three naves, and termination with a semicircular apse. The facade, where it is possible to admire the building technique in tuff blocks arranged in regular rows, is characterized by the presence of two semi-columns in tuff on the sides of the portal, and a third in the right corner. The half-columns each rest on a pilaster, also in tuff. A fourth semi-column must have been present near the left corner, where there is still a Tuscan base still in tuff. These still retain the Corinthian capitals of reuse, also in local tuff. The entrance is rather simple, with a molded secmicircular frame supported by two shelves with inlaid motifs in plants. The marble frame still preserves the kyma lesbio decoration, followed by a curb with parallel lines and a second frame with denticles. The frame overlooks a lunette where traces of a fresco can no longer be read. The whole is surmounted by two mullioned windows. Internally, the naves are divided into six bays and separated by arches supported on each side by five quadrangular pillars. The light comes from the mullioned windows placed on the perimeter walls. A large opening, now flanked, also with a round arch, is visible along the left perimeter. The only piece of furniture is the so-called chair of S. Paride, made up of a reddish tuff block. The interior is rather simple, and still has a small crypt with burials in the crate.

Caserta, the Royal Palace

The Royal Palace of Caserta is a royal residence, historically belonging to the Bourbons of the Two Sicilies, located in Caserta. Commissioned by Charles of Bourbon, the laying of the first stone, which started the construction work, took place on January 20, 1752, based on a project by Luigi Vanvitelli: this was followed by his son Carlo and other architects. The palace was completed in 1845.

Roccamonfina, sanctuary of Maria SS dei Lattani

The sanctuary of Maria Santissima dei Lattani is a Marian sanctuary located in the territory of the municipality of Roccamonfina, in Campania, the place of death of the bishop Giacinto Tamburini. The sanctuary was founded in 1430 by San Bernardino da Siena and San Giacomo della Marca, who had arrived there following the news of the discovery of a statue of the Virgin in the same or the previous year. A first rural chapel was built, then a first church, enlarged shortly after in its present form between 1448 and 1507. In 1446 Pope Eugene IV entrusted the convent, which had risen in the meantime, to the Franciscans. In March 1970 the sanctuary was elevated by Pope Paul VI to the dignity of a minor basilica. The buildings of the sanctuary open onto a large internal courtyard, opening onto the panorama. It is overlooked by the church, the convent and a building built at the time of its foundation, called "Protoconventino" or "hermitage of San Bernardino", recently restored in its original form. The facade of the church, preceded by a large porch with a round arch, preserves the original wooden door of 1507. The interior, with a single nave, divided into spans by pillars that support the cross vault with a lowered pointed arch, preserves 15th and 18th century frescoes and Gothic windows with polychrome stained glass. On the left opens the chapel dedicated to the Virgin of the Lattani, with a frescoed dome, which houses a statue of the Madonna and Child in basalt stone, covered with polychrome painting, perhaps attributable to the 9th century. The convent has a façade with arched portico and inside a rectangular cloister with pointed arches supported by small columns, of various shapes, on two floors. There are 17th century frescoes painted by his father Tommaso di Nola. The refectory opens onto the cloister. The so-called "Protoconventino" building overlooks the internal courtyard with a two-storey loggia, open to the valley with windows, the lower one decorated with a rose window. In the courtyard there is also a stone fountain and on the side facing the mountain a fifteenth-century fountain decorated in 1961 by a representation on colored ceramic.

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