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| History of the Monti Sibillini |
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| The
Monti Sibillini National Park is an area of great mystery and natural
beauty, forming part of the Apennines on the borders of Umbria and
Le Marche regions.The summit of the ridge not only marks the border
of Umbria, but also the watershed between the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian
seas.
The
mountains take their name from the sibyls, prophetesses
of classical mythology, who were supposed to
have predicted the coming of Christ. Legend
has it that one of the sibyls hid in a cave
known as the Grotta della Fate (Cave of the
Furies), when she was chased from the underworld.
Later folklore transformed the sibyls into temptresses
possessed by the devil, with those lured to
the caves doomed to be trapped there until the
day of judgement. |
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| Preci:
Situated 596 meters above sea level, the
history of Preci is a little obscure, but
it was first documented in1233 when the
obligations to provide hay for the horses
of the Imperial Retinue were recorded. Founded
in the Middle Ages, the fortified village
was later destroyed by earthquake and rebel
invasions, passing into the control of firstly
Spoleto, then neighbouring Norcia.
In
1528 it became a focal point following
fighting by bandits and outlaws of both
Norcia and Preci. As a result the castle
was beseiged and completely destroyed
by Norcia, with the inhabitants all removed
to Castelluccio. |
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Preci
was most renowned for its school of surgery. From the twelfth
to the eighteenth century, thirty families of surgeons passed
down their medical knowledge through the generations. The
students were not university scholars, but acquired their
skills directly from their families, successfully operating
on cataracts and the removal of gall stones. Patients of the
school of surgery included Pope Sixtus V, Sultan Mehmet the
Conqueror, and Elizabeth 1 of England.
Preci students, also adept at the butchering
and castration of pigs, developed a more
infamous sideline when undertaking to
castrate young boys unfortunate enough
to display an early operatic talent.
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| Preci
is a pretty village situated on what used
to be called the ' Valle Castoriana',
so named due to the abundance of castori
(otters), once found in the valley. With
narrow winding roads and views over valley
and mountains, a particularly attractive
view of Preci can be had from the hotel
in the same valley. |
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Norcia:
Norcia (originally Norsia, meaning 'fortune'),
is famed as the birthplace of St Benedict, founder
of Western monasticism, and patron saint of
Europe.
One of Italy's great culinary capitals, it is
renowned for its truffles, pork sausages, hams,
cheeses and lentils. Indeed, throughout Italy
you will find shops called 'Norcinerie' that
reflect Norcia's fame.
Still surrounded
by its twelfth century walls, Norcia has been inhabited since pre-historic
times, thanks to abundant springs, fine agricultural land and a
commanding position at one of the lower east-west routes across
the Apennines.
Although
affected by a general shift in population to
the larger cities, Norcia has recently enjoyed
a revival, thanks to the production and renewed
popularity of its traditional produce, sold
to visitors, and to Norcinerie in other areas
of Italy.
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