Sant'Agata de' Goti
Sant'Agata de' Goti (BN)
KnownVillages
The story
The houses lean out over the void, clinging to a spur of tufo (volcanic tuff) above the stream: a stone balcony in mid-air that the Goths chose and time has never let go.
Access
FREE
The story
Sant'Agata de' Goti is one of the pearls of the Sannio: an ancient town suspended on a tuff crag, at the western foot of the Taburno, on the border with the Caserta area. Of Roman foundation, it owes its name to the saint of Catania to whom the Lombards dedicated it in the eighth century and to the memory of the Goths who inhabited it. Beside the ancient core on the tuff, the modern town was added from the nineteenth century.
What to see
The old centre, perched on the tuff spur above the stream, is a tangle of alleys, churches and palaces that face sheer over the drop: the image of the houses on the ridge is among the most celebrated of the Sannio. Among the monuments stands out the Romanesque church of San Menna, with its very ancient floor in opus sectile.
How to get there
- Car needed
Public transport. Il trasporto pubblico in quest'area interna è limitato: i collegamenti in autobus sono radi e non sempre giornalieri. In pratica il luogo è difficilmente raggiungibile senza un mezzo proprio; per eventuali autolinee e per la stazione ferroviaria utile più vicina, verifica su Unico Campania e sui canali ufficiali degli operatori regionali (AIR Campania). · fonte: Fallback onesto — area interna, routing transit non disponibile
Hours and prices
Free entry.
Tips
Look for the spot from which you see the village 'suspended' on the tuff: it is the postcard of Sant'Agata. The centre is explored on foot, among ups and downs and alleys. You arrive by car, a short distance from Benevento and the Taburno; to be combined with Bucciano and its sanctuary.
Frequently asked questions
Why is Sant'Agata de' Goti famous?
For its ancient old centre, suspended on a tuff crag at the foot of the Taburno: it is considered one of the pearls of the Sannio.
What does the name Sant'Agata de' Goti mean?
It joins the Lombard dedication (eighth century) to the Catania saint Agatha and the memory of the Goths who inhabited the area.
What is there to see in Sant'Agata de' Goti?
The old centre on the tuff and the Romanesque church of San Menna, with its ancient floor in opus sectile.
More gems in Sant'Agata de' Goti
CastlesCastello Ducale di Sant'Agata de' Goti
Sant'Agata de' Goti (BN)
In the borgo (old village) perched on the tufo (volcanic tuff) ridge, the ducal castle overlooks houses that seem to plunge into the ravine: silent courtyards, frescoes and time that seems to have stopped.
Sacred artChiesa di San Menna
Sant'Agata de' Goti (BN)
Consecrated by Pope Paschal II in 1100, it holds one of the oldest Cosmatesque floors in the South. Yet the saint himself was a hermit of the Taburno who died in a cave: the luxury came only after him.
- ◆ History & archaeology
Lavatoio Reullo
Sant'Agata de' Goti (BN)
Three stone basins under a fourteenth-century pointed arch, where the Isclero meets the Riello: here women washed their laundry until only yesterday, and the underground water has never stopped arriving.
- ◆ Nature
Cascate e mulini del Vallone Martorano
Sant'Agata de' Goti (BN)
Beneath the tufo (volcanic tuff) spur on which the borgo (old village) seems to float, the water plunges in a series of leaps among the ruins of mills and an old ironworks: the water trail that no visitor to Sant'Agata ever climbs down to find.
- Views & panoramas
Ponte Vecchio di Sant'Agata de' Goti
Sant'Agata de' Goti (BN)
The exact point where Sant'Agata stops being a town and becomes an apparition: the houses clinging to the tufo ridge, suspended over the void.
- Sacred art
Chiesa dell'Annunziata e il Giudizio Universale
Sant'Agata de' Goti (BN)
Across the whole inner façade, an early fifteenth-century Last Judgement: Christ the judge welcomes with one hand and turns away with the other. It is painted on the west wall, so that the setting sun itself lights up the end of the world.
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