abruzzo: italy’s ancient, wild heart
Limelight Arts Travel Staff
01 October 2022
Abruzzo (sometimes called “Abruzzi” in English) lies almost exactly at Italy’s geographical heart. Stretching from the Adriatic coast at Pescara up and over the high Apennine peaks until they descend to Rome, the region is loved by Italians for its summer beaches and alpine walks, winter skiing and superlative, untouched medieval sites, and of course its vibrant food culture.
And yet it’s almost undiscovered by international visitors, so there’s a real sense of discovery as you move about the region. Abruzzo’s cultural heritage runs deep, ranging from prehistoric indigenous sites to Roman towns, hermit monasteries hidden in the hills, medieval fortresses, artistic gems and a thriving food and wine scene based on unique local ingredients. The air is fresh and the towering mountains and plunging valleys add a sense of drama to the journey. We’ve wanted to explore the region for a tour for some time, and are thrilled to have launched Along the Apennines for April 2023.
In July 2022, Limelight publisher Robert Veel visited Abruzzo, to inspect personally the hotels we’ve selected and ensure that practical arrangements run smoothly. He returned with a great enthusiasm for the region, and we’ve used many of his photographs in this pictorial introduction to Abruzzo.
View over the cable car on the scenic drive up the Gran Sasso
(photo: Robert Veel)
Geographically, Abruzzo is one of Italy’s most mountainous regions, with three chains of the Apennines running through it and the highest mountain, Gran Sasso (above), reaching up to over 2,900 metres above sea level at its peak, Corno Grande. Like much of Abruzzo, Gran Sasso is a national park, with rare animals like the Apennine wolf, Marsican bear, Abruzzo chamois and European wildcat still roaming its remote places, and flocks of sheep and their shepherds following ancient droving paths of transhumance in a practice recognised by UNESCO.
Aprutium, as the Romans called it, has been inhabited since at least 6,500 BCE, and founding myths claim lineages back to Achilles (who apparently named Chieti in honour of his mother Thetis). From the fifth century BCE, the Romans began to turn their attention to the mountains looming above them, gradually colonising Abruzzo and inflicting a crushing defeat on it in the Second Samnite War. Nevertheless, the original inhabitants held onto their proud sense of difference despite the Romanisation of the ensuing centuries, a distinct character that one still feels when travelling.
View over the Roman ruins of Alba Fucens, colonised from the fourth century BCE
(photo: Robert Veel)
After the fall of Rome, Abruzzo eventually became part of the powerful Lombard Duchy of Spoleto, and remained a geographically strategic place, its mountain roads connecting the east and west coasts of Italy. The Sicilian Normans took an interest in the territory from the twelfth century, and Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II - a Sicilian Norman through his mother, and a Swabian Hohenstaufen through his father - even founded a new town in 1240, uniting a cluster of small villages under the grand imperial ensign of the eagle: L’Àquila. He also invested in an extraordinary aqueduct in Sulmona, a pleasant town that was the birthplace of Roman poet Ovid and is today the traditional centre of production for confetti, the sugared almonds in fantastical shapes and colours that are still exchanged at weddings, baptisms and other celebrations.
Early morning light catches the medieval aqueduct in Sulmona
(photo: Robert Veel)
In the Middle Ages, Abruzzo began to draw hermits, monks and nuns seeking a spiritual retreat in this wild landscape. They also extended simple hospitality to the travellers and shepherds who criss-crossed the mountains. One such monk was Pietro Angelerio, a local peasant who became a Benedictine monk at 17 and, at 24, retired to a solitary life in a cave on Mount Morrone. The huge Abbey of Santo Spirito al Monte Morrone still marks this spot.
Pietro’s way of living attracted so many followers that a new Benedictine offshoot was established, the Celestines, and its founder came to unexpected prominence when he was elected pope in 1292 - despite not even being a member of the College of Cardinals. Pietro had no desire to wear the papal tiara and, although reluctantly crowned Pope Celestine V in L’Àquila’s church of Santa Maria di Collemaggio, resigned after only five months and eight days. Only one other pope would voluntarily resign after him, before Benedict XVI’s surprising decision in 2013.
Santo Spirito a Maiella hermitage, restored in 1246 by Pope Celestine V
One of the most impressive of these hermitages that we’ll visit is Santo Spirito a Maiella. It clings to the side of the rockface in a landscape that is often referred to as the very soul of Abruzzo. The Maiella massif is not particularly high, but in ancient times it was the centre of a goddess cult, and its paleolithic cave dwellings, round stone refuges used by shepherds (tholos) and fortifications are known to walkers and Abruzzesi alike as the ‘Mother Mountain’.
Driving through the Maiella, Robert was impressed by how different, and at times untouched, the landscape here could feel. The mountain passes in this region were defended from medieval times by prominent towers and fortresses, some of them now beautifully restored and ironically very welcoming. They do give a sense of how medieval Abruzzesi protected their settlements, as Robert discovered at the Fortezza Monastero di Santo Spirito in Ocre, near L’Àquila.
Lovers of medieval Italian art probably think of places like Florence, Assisi and Padua when planning out where to see outstanding and well-preserved frescoes. But one of the biggest surprises in Abruzzo is the range and quality of art that decorates its churches, abbeys, hermitages and oratories. Not far from the Fortezza Monastero di Santo Spirito lie the churches of Santa Maria ad Cryptas and the Oratorio di San Pellegrino, both of them covered in colourful, complex and absorbing frescoes. The latter commemorates a fourth-century local, Pellegrino, and is a small place of prayer built in the 1260s alongside a larger church. The oratory is sited in an extraordinary landscape (below).
It’s a simple building, made out of local stone and with few openings in the walls - although there’s a small rose window that lets in the light. This illuminates one of the best-preserved medieval fresco cycles in central Italy. It’s an encyclopedia of the faith that ranges across the life of Christ to the Last Judgement, stories of the saints and a cycle of the months. At least three artists worked on the decorations, which cover every part of the oratory’s interior in pigments - blues, reds, greens - that demonstrate strong connections to distant urban centres, where such artistic materials were more readily available. The oratory and its frescoes are a highlight of our tour.
Glorious detail at left (photo: Robert Veel) and the calm interior of the small oratory at right (photo: Pietro, Wikimedia Commons)
Most of the visitors to the Oratorio di San Pellegrino in Bominaco are Italians - the frescoes aren’t well known outside of the country. A site that’s much better known, although you may not know it by name, is the Rocca di Calascio. It’s the highest stone fortress in Abruzzo, standing at an elevation of over 1,500 metres, and despite its impressive dimensions it was irrevocably damaged in a fifteenth-century earthquake. While the nearby town of Calascio and chapel of Santa Maria di Pietà below were rebuilt, the Rocca (below) was not, making it an awe-inspiring film set for the 1985 film Ladyhawke and Sean Connery’s Name of the Rose (1986) - both highly recommended for their views of this landscape.
Before you think that Abruzzo’s best aspects remain squarely in its past, consider L’Àquila. It’s the capital city of the region, with a population of over 70,000, and in addition to medieval glories such as Santa Maria di Collemaggio, it is a centre of Abruzzo’s modern ski industry and home to a public university. Originally granted a license to commence studies in the fifteenth century, the university today attracts almost 20,000 students. Although badly damaged in the 2009 earthquake, the elegant and spacious buildings of the city centre are being restored with pride - with repeated complaints that this burden is not being equally shared at the national government level.
You gain a sense of L’Àquila’s growing movida at MAXXI L’Àquila. This is a branch of Rome’s National Museum of Twenty-First Century Art (known as MAXXI). The Àquila branch opened in June 2021, the result of a visit by Minister for the Arts Dario Franceschini in 2014. He recognised the need to bring a sense of optimism to the town, and the historic monument of Palazzo Ardinghelli was chosen to host temporary exhibitions, comprising extended loans from Rome’s MAXXI as well as new commissions. Robert loved the juxtaposition of Francesco Fontana’s elegant eighteenth-century architecture, beautifully rebuilt post-earthquake (Robert’s photo below), and the dynamic works of international art inside. He also commented on how MAXXI L’Àquila will attract cultural weekenders from Rome, which is only two hours’ drive away.
Finally, no trip to Abruzzo would be complete without sampling some of its local delicacies. Abruzzo stretches from the Adriatic to the mountains, and its cuisine reflects this position between mare and monti. From the freshest seafood to ‘shepherd’s food’ of bread, meat, cheese or pasta, regional gastronomy is championed here. There are numerous roadside stalls selling mouth-watering arrosticcini, or small lamb skewers, to restaurants making daily maccheroni alla chitarra, where egg dough is pressed through a mandoline (chitarra) to form a fresh pasta usually served with ragù. There are myriad local sweets, from torrone or nougat in L’Àquila to the waffle-like biscuits called pizzelle.
And lest we forget, Abruzzo is also home to a number of protected wines, such as the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC red to the increasingly popular Trebbiano d’Abruzzo DOC white. Both of these are made with grapes only grown in a small local area, thus their status as Controlled Designation of Origin (DOC).
Abruzzo is a fascinating region, rich in history and with varied and extraordinary landscapes. It’s also delightfully unknown to most international international travellers, meaning that an authentic Italian experience far from the tourist hordes is still possible here.
Detailed research of new destinations such as this is a hallmark of Limelight Arts Travel’s tours. So we appreciate Limelight publisher Robert Veel’s thorough exploration of Abruzzo on our behalf - and, as you might imagine, we’re also just a little bit envious!
Header image of Santa Maria della Pietà (Calascio) by Marco Mincarelli, ENIT
the APPIAN WAY, BARI & ABRUZZO
Dates: 05-20 May 2025
Tour Leader: Dr Kathryn Welch
Take the road less travelled in southern Italy, following ancient roads and discovering Roman archaeology, rock churches, medieval frescoes, and Abruzzo’s outstanding scenery.