Culture of Abruzzo Italy - Travel Guide & information

This description page of Abruzzo will guide you planning your trip to Italy and find useful travel information about the Culture of this region of Italy.

People are believed to have been in the Abruzzo region for about 700,000 yearsThe pastoral cultural background is particularly evident in the mountainous areas of Abruzzo, where a series of important finds have been uncovered in archeological sites.

Even the memories of ancient Abruzzo are still alive in towns dating back to the Roman times, such as Juvanum, Alba Fucens or Confinium, and in prehistorical sites such as the necropolis of CampoValano and Alfedena, or in the archaeological finds of Touta Maruca at Rapino and in those near Schiavi d’Abruzzo.

Medieval Abruzzo is just as interesting with its magnificent churches, famous abbeys, monasteries, and numerous castles. The Romanesque style was brought to the area by Benedictine monks from Cluny. A combination of local craftsmanship and Romanesque structures has resulted in a decorative form of sculpture including stylistic developments in pulpits, friezes, bell towers and altars.

The Romanesque style was so prominent in Abruzzo that it prevented the Gothic style from catching on, although it slowly began to make its presence felt first in decorative elements and then much more forcefully in building structure itself, as can be seen in the Cathedral of Teramo and the Church of San Domenico in L’Aquila.

Other striking artistic features are Abruzz's medieval and Renaissance paintings. One of the most significant examples is the series of frescoes in the Oratory of San Pallegrino in Bonimaco and the frescoes in the Cathedral of Atri, the work of the most refined Abruzzo painter of all, Andrea de Litio.

Abruzzo is not only a region where nature reigns, but also an area where religion, art and history are deeply immersed in nature.

There are over 500 castles, watch towers and walls around the Abruzzo landscape, all built by locals to defend their land against potential invaders. Among the buildings to have survived the earthquakes are the castles of Balsorano, Bussi sul Tirino, Celano, Capestrano, Crecchio, Gagliano Aterno, L’Aquila, Nocciano, and Roccascalegna, as well as the Civitella del Tronto Fortress.

The mountains, above all the Maiella, conceal hermitages, where many anchorites retired to meditate, the most famous being Pope Celestino V, who according to tradition, retired to the hermitages of S. Spirito, of S. Bartolomeo di Legio and the Badia Morronese (Morrone abbey).

Numerous are the rocky churches built on sites of previous pagan temples. Most unique are the churches along the sheep-tracks, places of shelter and spiritual relief for shepherds and travelers.

Abruzzo is scattered with beautiful abbeys of various styles, such as the Romanesque, the Benedictine, and the Cistercian: worthy of mention are S.Giovanni in Venere, S.Clemente a Casauria, S.Liberatore a Maiella or S. Maria Propezzano. The spirituality pervading the soul of Abruzzo is also expressed in its sanctuaries, object of continuous religious pilgrimages: from S.Gabriele dell’Addolorata, on the slopes of Gran Sasso, to the Eucharistic Miracle at Lanciano, to Madonna dei Miracoli at Casalbordino. 

Pastoral traditions in the mountains are matched by traditions in the plains, as can very often be seen in the local feasts and festivals that liven up the tourist season and offer visitors a taste of local culture, ancient rituals, and the proverbial Abruzzo hospitality. A cradle of ancient civilization symbolized by the extraordinary statue of the “Guerriero di Capestrano”  (Capestrano Warrior), the Abruzzo region has managed to conserve centuries-old traditions underlying a craft tradition of high artistic quality and simple, natural food which is particularly tasty thanks to the mix of foods from land and sea.

Many famous men of culture were born in Abruzzo, dating back to ancient times including: Sallust and Ovid, Pietro Angelerio, better know as Celestine V, the sculptor Nicola da Guardiagrele, Benedetto Croce and Gabriele d’Annunzio, as well as the medieval author Tommaso da Celano, the architect Francesco de Marchi, the painters Giuseppe and Filippo Palizzi, and the writers Ennio Flaiano and Ignazio Silone.

Leading figures in literature, art, philosophy and religion were all born in this incredible land, where cities of art mix with modern towns, ancient traditions co-exist with state-of-the-art wind power systems and sheep farming and events such as transhumance take place in the same setting where the biggest nuclear physics center in Italy has been built deep inside the Gran Sasso – increasing the importance of a region which has managed to draw on the strength of its own roots as lessons for the future.

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