Unspoiled Calabria, the hidden gem of Southern Italy

One of the most neglected destinations in Italy is Calabria, the “toe” of the boot. But things are changing as tourists discover the remarkable beauty of the rugged hill towns, Mediterranean influenced cuisine and travel bargains the south affords. Greek influences are felt here and a dialect of the language is still spoken in some areas.

In summer the little lanes that run through the towns and the beautiful beaches on the Tyrrhenian and Ionian Seas get a lot of European tourists and recently Americans have been discovering their charms.

With more and more restaurants in America featuring the tasty foods of Calabria, gastronomic tourism is becoming more important as well. Cuisine changes with the land in this area, depending on what the earth provides and tradition demands.

The stigma thrust on the south by the wealthier north as a land of peasants, has preserved the area and its agricultural economy and the new rush of tourism is bringing money and new self-esteem to its inhabitants. Many Americans trace their family roots to this part of Italy; where over the last 150 years poverty and internecine warfare forced Italians to leave the “old Country,” fleeing to America.

Lying on the tip of the toe, Calabria offers dramatic landscapes as you cross from the Ionian Sea on the south over the high Apennine ridge, where you can encounter snow in winter, and descend to the Tyrrhenian Sea side and view the steep coastline that shelters little fishing villages, like Scilla and Bagnara.

Scilla is a unique spot that CNN added to its list of the most beautiful villages in Italy, a seaside tourist destination capable of attracting writers, poets and artists from all over the world.

The origins of Scilla are linked to Greek mythology. Legend has it that Scylla, an extraordinarily beautiful nymph, was transformed by the sorceress Circe, her rival in love, into a frightful sea monster with six dog-heads. From that moment on Scylla lived in the Strait of Messina, on the opposite side from the Sicilian monster Charybdis, and as soon as she saw sailors coming close to her side, she would devour them without mercy.

In Homer’s Odyssey, Ulysses is warned of the dangers of the two by the sorceress Circe.

The seaside resort town of Crotone is one of the oldest cities of Europe. Founded by the ancient Greeks in 710 BC, it was for a long time one of the most flourishing cities of Magna Graecia, name given by the Romans to the Greek colonies of Southern Italy.

The city of Reggio Calabria is the largest in the area and is home to the most important Archaeological Museum dedicated to Magna Graecia of the entire Italian peninsula. Inside the Museum there are the very famous Riace Bronzes. The two statues, found on August 16, 1972 near Riace, in the province of Reggio Calabria, are considered among the most significant sculptural masterpieces of Greek art, and among the direct testimonies of the great master sculptors of the classical age.

Reggio Calabria has a lovely promenade facing the Strait of Messina that many consider the most beautiful in Italy. Just two and a half miles across the Strait is the island of Sicily.

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Altomonte, Calabria, Italy

Photos by Foto storiche di Altomonte

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Finding the treasures of the goddess Hera at Capo Colonna, Crotone (Calabria, southern Italy)

With modern life increasingly dominated by technology, holidays are becoming one of the rare chances to spend time immersed in nature, when we can try to look at the world around us rather than computer screens.

Calabria, with its wild landscapes and panoramic views of the Mediterranean sea, is an ideal place to reestablish a connection with the natural, simple side of life and enjoy the vibrant colours of wild flowers and cacti while listening out to the sounds of insects, birds and animals.

One of the best places to experience the natural beauty of this southern Italian region is at Capo Colonna, a promontory known as Capo Lacinio in antiquity, which is about 13 km south of Crotone in eastern Calabria. This is the site of one of the most important sanctuaries in Magna Graecia, the area of southern Italy colonized and populated by Greek settlers from the eighth century BC.  It was dedicated to the goddess Hera, wife of Zeus and queen of the Gods, who was venerated here as the protector of women, as well as a type of Mother Nature, the protector of animals and of sea travel, and a sort of liberator.

A grand temple to Hera Lacinia stood on the site from around the fifth century BC. From their boats, sailors would have had a view of the eastern side of the temple and its six columns. Unfortunately, it was demolished in the 16th century AD so its materials could be used for the construction of various buildings in Crotone. The sanctuary was further pillaged in the 18th century.

Nowadays all that remains of the temple is one single Doric column, measuring 8.35 metres in height.  Nevertheless, the surrounding land and views of the sea still reflect the sacred nature of this site that may have originally inspired the idea for a sanctuary here.

The most outstanding piece is a glistening gold diadem, or tiara, shaped out of a band of gold leaf and decorated with both a braid pattern and foliage garland. It is believed to have undergone two phases of work between the sixth and fifth centuries BC, and likely crowned a representation of Hera within the sanctuary. Interestingly, coins used in Crotone from the fourth century portrayed a crowned head of Hera.

To this day, the diadem still maintains its golden glow and is quite a treat to stumble upon in the museum.

The gifts left to Hera that were found in the sanctuary also include a set of intriguing bronze ornaments that are sculpted into three female mythological figures: the Siren, the Seated Sphinx, and the Winged Gorgon.

Before heading to Capo Colonna, visitors to the area can discover more about its stories at the Archaeological Museum in Crotone. Excavations begun by the archaeologist Paolo Orsi in 1910 uncovered a treasure trove of gold, silver and bronze votive offerings to the goddess, which provide insight into the people and traditions of the time.

A Siren was one of several sea nymphs in classical mythology, which was part-woman and part-bird. They seduced seamen and lured them to shipwreck. The bronze siren found in the sanctuary of Hera dates to the middle of the sixth century BC.

The Sphinx was a winged monster in mythology, with a woman’s head and a lion’s body. She would kill anyone who was unable to answer her riddle. The Sphinx found here probably once adorned a container such as a cauldron and is dated to around 540 BC.

The Winged Gorgon, which dates to a similar time, is an especially interesting and unique piece. It is running to the left and grinning while sticking its tongue out, a pose associated with this female creature of the underworld.

Among other offerings left to the goddess, I found a bronze ship linked to the ancient Nuragic civilization of Sardinia, made in the seventh century BC. This ornament, depicting a typical Sardinian ship, portrays two carts drawn by a pair of oxen on both sides, and two doves on flagpoles. It is the first of its kind discovered in southern Italy and highlights the importance of the sanctuary of Hera, to which someone felt compelled to donate such a beautiful and rare gift.

This sculpture of a horse was also found, one of the first discovered in Calabria which resembles the Greek geometric style. Dating to the 7th century BC, it points to close and regular relations between the sanctuary of Hera and other sanctuaries in Greece.

Centres of worship such as the sanctuary of Hera developed on the edges of the settlement of Crotone, one of the most important cities in Magna Graecia, and were considered signs of divine protection. Religious sanctuaries were focal points for local inhabitants and became a meeting place for Greek travellers and indigenous people.

In the near-by museum on the site of Capo Colonna, there are further remains of the temple to see, such as this female head, discovered in 1972, which was probably from a sculpture on its roof.

The natural area around the temple was viewed as a sacred forest, according to several ancient accounts. Since a plan was launched in the 1980s to turn the area into a protected archeological park, a new group of trees have been planted along the road towards the sanctuary. The surroundings are covered in wild poppies and other bright flowers, which create wonderful contrasts with the azure and turquoise waters of the sea.

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Altomonte, Calabria, Italy

Photos by Foto storiche di Altomonte, In Calabria ti guido io, Dreamstime, Posti e Pasti

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Altomonte, Calabria, Italy

Photos by Foto Storiche di Altomonte

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Olive trees, vineyards, Mediterranean scrub, millennial traditions, sweet hills and impervious peaks, the sea that connected Greece and Italy more than 2.000 years ago, two languages (one of which is lost in history and still exists only here). Old Calabria, the undiscovered gem of Southern Italy.

Photos by @calabreeze and @trasparenzacalabrese

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Altomonte, Calabria, Italy

Altomonte is a charming medieval village sitting on a promontory 450 meters above sea level, at the foot of the National Park of Pollino.

The place corresponds to the old village of Balbia, name of Phoenician origin (that means Lord) mentioned by Roman author Pliny, the Elder, when celebrates the goodness of the Balbino wine.

Situated on the hill, the houses seem to be welded to the ground and the rocks, the hills with olive trees, fields and spots are a real timeless spectacle.

During the medieval period, Altomonte became a fortified center and played a significant role in the defense of the region. Over the centuries, the town developed into a typical Calabrian village, preserving its historical character and traditions.

The heart of Altomonte is its historical centre, characterized by narrow cobbled streets, stone houses, and ancient buildings.

The many streets and stairways cluster around the center of the village, where the Church of Santa Maria della Consolazione is located. A true Gothic-Angevin art treasure, with a rose window and a very elegant facade, while the bell tower is decorated with a mullioned window.

Adjoining the church is the Dominican Monastery that now houses the Civic Museum, where important works of art are preserved.

The village offers visitors a chance to savor traditional Calabrian cuisine, with a focus on local products such as olive oil, cured meats, and regional wines.

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Altomonte, Calabria, Italy

Photos by @errare.e.umano

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Altomonte, Calabria, Italy - 1982

Photos by Santi Visalli

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Vineyards on the Southern Thyrrenian coast of Calabria, Italy

Photos by Vini di Calabria and Apollo e Dioniso

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