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Molise, Italy
Molise, ITALIAN REGIONS
Molise is situated in south-central Italy and lies between the Apennine ridge and the Adriatic Sea. Nature, history, art, age-old traditions and good food are the treasures of this still largely-undiscovered region. Visiting Molise, you get that Eureka feeling of discovery, starting with its mainly mountainous and hilly layout, scored by the characteristic tratturi, the historic trails of seasonal migration of people and livestock that join the pastures of Abruzzo to those of Apulia.
The region is split into two provinces, named after their respective capitals Campobasso and Isernia. Campobasso also serves as the regional capital.
In Campobasso, visitors can admire the historic center and the majestic battlemented castle of the Longobard period; the Romanesque churches of San Bartolomeo and San Giorgino. The church of Sant Antonino Abate houses the collection of carvings and wooden sculptures of sixteenth-century masters of Molise.
About fifteen kilometers from the city, rises the Romanesque Santa Maria della Strada, with the fifteenth-century Gothic sepulchre. In Isernia, the Civic Museum holds Samnitic epigraphs and sculptures; the fourteenth-century Fontana della Fraterna is also very interesting. In Pastena, tourists can admire the monumental Sanctuary of the Addolorata of Castelpetroso, surrounded by a thick forest.
Your journey of discovery starts in Campobasso, a town steeped in history and culture, and dominated by the imposing Castello Monforte. Particularly significant is the Provincial Samnite Museum, with its displays featuring valuable exhibits from the civilizations that lived here, precious vestiges of the peoples that inhabited the territory from proto-history to the Samnite period.
The historic town of Isernia boasts a 13th-Century fountain and ancient prehistoric site just outside the developed areas.
It is worth visiting the two small towns that even today hand down valuable artisanal activities: Agnone, specializing in the manufacture of bells for the world’s most significant churches, and Scapoli, the town renowned for bagpipes, with a museum devoted entirely to this ancient musical instrument.
The region’s archaeological sites carry great significance. These include: the Samnite town of Pietrabbondante with its beautiful theatre, Sepino with the ruins of Roman buildings, and Larino, which combines valuable Roman remains with a magnificent example of Medieval art – the Roman and Gothic-style Cathedral. Some other major towns are Termoli, a tourist resort and port, with the stately Swabian Castle and the Romanesque Cathedral, and Venafro, with its Pandone Castle, the Romanesque and Gothic Cathedral, and Roman and pre-Roman archaeological discoveries.
The region boasts countless castles, such as that of Pescolanciano, as well as a number of abbeys and sanctuaries, including the Benedectine Abbey at San Vincenzo al Volturno, the Sanctuary of the Addolorata, Castelpetroso and the Sanctuary of Canneto in Roccavivara. Finally, some splendid examples of Romanesque architecture include the Church of St. George in Petrella Tifernina and the Church of Santa Maria della Strada in Matrice.
Just as worth visiting are the tratturi, grassy trails treaded by livestock herders and their animals during the periods of transhumance. Today they serve as an amazing testimony to peasant and shepherd life.
A must for sports lovers is Campitello Matese, the ski resort in central-southern Italy with the most snow.
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