Hermitage of San Michele Arcangelo of Pescocostanzo

The hermitage of San Michele Arcangelo, a place of rock worship, is located in a cave at the foot of Mount Pizzalto at an altitude of 1266 m a.s.l. Probably built in place of a pre-existing Italic-Roman cult environment dedicated to Hercules protector of the flocks, with the spread of Christianity and with the presence of the Lombards, it was named after St. Michael the Archangel, protector of the Germanic people. The hermitage appears already in 1183 in a bull of Pope Lucius III and in 1536 is attested in the municipal statutes of Pescocostanzo, as a washhouse for women. In 1597 the peasant society of Pescara restored the sanctuary. During the Second World War it was also used as a refuge and military base. The rock complex consists of an L-shaped facade that has, along the long side, two openings, a larger one, from 1598, with a band order and horizontal crown supported by kneeling shelves and a simpler minor. The two doors lead respectively to the church and to a funeral chapel of the Ricciardelli family. Between the two doors there is a deep round niche, on the bottom of which traces of painted plaster are still visible. The smaller side facade, afferents, leads instead to the living area with two rooms arranged on as many levels, once used also as a shelter for transhumant shepherds. Inside, what is striking is the stark contrast between the rough structure of the vault of the cave and the pavement in local white stone slabs, well connected. Of notable artistic interest is the finely worked balustrade, always in white stone, which divides the presbytery area in width from that intended for the faithful; at the end of the cave there is a simple stone altar and a niche which probably housed the statue of St. Michael the Archangel which today is located in the Rosary church in the town.

Accessibility: the route is easy to travel and suitable for families. It can be reached by car or a short walk of about 3 and a half kilometers from the center of the village of Pescocostanzo.Information: Municipality of Pescocostanzo - 0864.640003