San Mauro Forte is a town and ''
comune
The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...
'' in the
province of Matera
The province of Matera ( it, Provincia di Matera; Materano: ) is a province in the Basilicata region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Matera. It has an area of and a total population of 201,133; the city Matera has a population of 61,204. T ...
, in the Southern Italian region of
Basilicata
it, Lucano (man) it, Lucana (woman)
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.
History
The area was established in the sixth century.
It was probably part of
Magna Graecia
Magna Graecia (, ; , , grc, Μεγάλη Ἑλλάς, ', it, Magna Grecia) was the name given by the Romans to the coastal areas of Southern Italy in the present-day Italian regions of Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata, Campania and Sicily; these re ...
.
Geography
The town is on a hill, above sea level, in the west central part of the province. To the north are the communes of
Salandra
Salandra ( Lucano: ; ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Matera, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata
it, Lucano (man) it, Lucana (woman)
, population_note =
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, population_blank1 ...
(14 km/9 miles), Oliveto Lucano (15 km/9 miles) and Garaguso (17 km/11 miles). To the east is
Ferrandina
Ferrandina ( Lucano: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Matera, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. It is a center for production of high quality olive oil.
Geography data
The town is located on a hill in the Basento Vall ...
(31 km/20 miles) with
Craco
Craco is a ghost town and ''comune'' in the province of Matera, in the southern Italian region of Basilicata. It was abandoned towards the end of the 20th century, due to faulty pipe work that was thought to have failed, causing the town to be ab ...
(25 km/15 miles) and
Stigliano
Stigliano ( Lucano: , Latin: ''Stilianum'') is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Matera, in the Basilicata region of southern Italy.
The name is likely of Byzantine origin, stemming from " Stylianos", a Greek name with a Latin ending.
H ...
(31 km/20 miles) to the south.
Accettura
Accettura is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Matera, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. It is bounded by the ''comuni'' of Calciano, Campomaggiore, Cirigliano, Oliveto Lucano, Pietrapertosa, San Mauro Forte and Stigliano.
Ge ...
is (14 km/9 miles) to the south. The provincial capital,
Matera
Matera (, ; Materano: ) is a city in the region of Basilicata, in Southern Italy.
As the capital of the province of Matera, its original settlement lies in two canyons carved by the Gravina River. This area, the Sassi di Matera, is a comple ...
, is 70 km/44 miles away, while the administrative capital of the adjacent province,
Potenza
Potenza (, also , ; , Potentino dialect: ''Putenz'') is a ''comune'' in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata (former Lucania).
Capital of the Province of Potenza and the Basilicata region, the city is the highest regional capital and one ...
, is 66 km/41 miles away.
San Mauro Forte is included in the administrative grouping of
Upland Communes of the Matera Hills.
Main sights
* Torre Normanna, "Norman Tower"
* The sixteenth-century Church of Santa Maria Assunta, in which are preserved valuable paintings from the eighteenth century;
* The Church of the Annunciation, built in the sixteenth century by Franciscan monks, with an adjoining convent;
* The Church of St. Mary of the Angels (also known as Chapel of the Rosary or Saint Lucia), of ancient origins;
* The eighteenth-century Church of St. Vincent, with a
majolica
In different periods of time and in different countries, the term ''majolica'' has been used for two distinct types of pottery.
Firstly, from the mid-15th century onwards, was ''maiolica'', a type of pottery reaching Italy from Spain, Majorca a ...
tiled floor and an eighteenth-century organ;
* The noble palaces, such as Palazzo Arciaerie (today seat of the Town Hall) and Palazzo Lauria, famous for its Baroque-style portal.
Religious festivals
* The Feast of
Saint Maurus
Maurus (french: Maur; it, Mauro) was the first disciple of Benedict of Nursia (512–584). He is mentioned in Gregory the Great's biography of the latter as the first oblate, offered to the monastery by his noble Roman parents as a young bo ...
, 15 January
* Campanacci, the "Festival of the Cowbell", 16 January
Soundmasks in resounding places - Listening to the Campanaccio of San Mauro Forte
Nicola Scaldaferri, Sonic ethnography, Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.7765/9781526151988.00009 , Online Publication Date: 15 Dec 2020
* St Anthony the Abbot, 17 January
* The Feast of Saint Roch, 3 September
Gallery
File:San Mauro Forte. La torre.jpg, Torre Normanna "Norman Tower"
File:San Mauro Forte, veduta.jpg, View of the village
File:San Mauro Forte, La Chiesa madre.jpg, La Chiesa madre (Main church)
Demographic
''Population census''
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See also
* Carnival of Satriano di Lucania
The Carnival of Satriano ( it, Carnevale di Satriano), held in Satriano di Lucania, Italy every February, is one of the country's many carnivals. Held on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday before Fat Tuesday (a ''Mardi Gras'' festival), it has been c ...
References
Cities and towns in Basilicata
{{Basilicata-geo-stub