Sermoneta

Sermoneta, an amazing balcony overlooking the Pontine Plain, lies on the top of a hill in the Lepini Mountains, surrounded by magnificent olive and chestnut groves and beech forests.

Its evocative medieval historic centre, within the town walls, is among the best preserved in the whole territory.Not to be missed are the Collegiate Church of Santa Maria, the Church dedicated to San Giuseppe or to the Immaculate Conception, the former Synagogue, and the Church of the Annunziata.

Also noteworthy are the Convent of San Francesco with the famous five hundred years old holm oak, the Belvedere, the panoramic terrace from where to contemplate the Pontine Plain and the Loggia dei Mercanti.

The Loggia dei Mercanti is a Gothic portico built in the mid-15th century by Onorato Caetani as a municipal headquarters, business centre and venue for public assemblies. Stables were located under the arches.

“Ricordati che devi morire”

Massimo Troisi appears in the Loggia dei Mercanti in the 1984 film ‘Non ci resta che piangere’ and listens to these words from a preacher.

“Sì, sì … no, mò me lo segno proprio, non ti preoccupare”

This is how Troisi responds in one of the scenes that has gone down in Italian cinema history.

The gem of the town is undoubtedly the impressive Castello Caetani from the thirteenth century, dominating the historic centre, and restored by Gelasio Caetani at the end of the nineteenth century. It is characterised by the Maschio tower, with the study and bedroom of the last Caetani family members, the counter-tower known as Maschietto, and a large Piazza d’Armi with a cistern.

Thanks to the nobleman, today’s visitors may experience the life that took place in the fortress. It will be possible to admire the Cardinal Hall from the 1500s, used for receptions, the women seats by the windows, the kitchen with its large fireplace for cooking wild game, the bread oven, the water cistern, and the splendid Painted Rooms, where illustrious guests were welcomed.

The stables, whose reed insulated ceiling maintains a constant temperature, has been hosting the Pontine Chamber Music Festival for sixty years.

And besides, some unforgettable scenes from the cult movie “Non ci resta che piangere”, with the comedians Massimo Troisi and Roberto Benigni, were shot here. Caetani Castle is one of the Historic Residences in Lazio, open to the public by appointment and for a fee.

Today, the protection and enhancement of the Castello Caetani in Sermoneta, of the Garden of Ninfa, the Parco Naturale di Pantanello, the monumental complex of Tor Tre Ponti in Latina and all the assets of the Caetani Family in the Pontine area, are managed by the Fondazione Roffredo Caetani, established in 1972 by Lelia Caetani, last heir of the noble family.

A visit to the evocative Abbey of Valvisciolo, one of the first examples of Gothic-Cistercian architecture in Italy, has definitely to be made. Founded in the 8th century by Greek monks, it was occupied and restored by the Knights Templar in the 13th century. In the 14th century, the Cistercians took over.

It is said that in 1314, the lintels of the church broke when the last Grand Master of the Knights Templar, Jacques de Molay, was burned at the stake. The cracks in the lintel are still visible today.

“SATOR AREPO TENET OPERA ROTAS”

The complex consists of the church, the chapter house, the refectory and the cloister, which is the centre of the complex and the most elegant part of Valvisciolo. In the cloister, the five famous words of the magical palindrome have been brought to light, arranged in five concentric circles, as if to form a sort of target.

The Valvisciolo Abbey Museum is housed in the former dispensary of the Cistercian monastery and contains works from the Abate Stanislao White Gallery by Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt, Canaletto, Giovan Battista Piranesi and Francisco Goya. Alongside this collection are works from the Abbey’s historical collection, such as Pomarancio’s Deposition, the Virgin in Prayer attributed to the circle of Sassoferrato, and Raimondo Giarrè’s Immaculate Virgin.

The Palazzo Ada Caetani is Sermoneta’s ‘palace of culture’, one of Lazio’s historic residences in the old town centre. Ada Whilbraham Caetani was the mother of Roffredo Caetani, Prince of Bassiano and last Duke of Sermoneta. The palace was built in 1500 by the De Marchis family and sold in 1600 to the Caetani family, who lived there from 1800 onwards.

The Palazzo Ada Caetani housed the Scuola Pia, a school for girls, until the end of the 1800s. In 1914, the Ada Caetani nursery school was established for farmers’ children and children suffering from malaria, and remained open until 1979. The Salone Nobile features a coffered wooden ceiling and frescoed decorations on the walls, all dating back to the 1600s. The main floor is used for exhibitions and conferences.

Since 2004, the ground floor of the palace has housed the Ceramics Museum, which is a journey from prehistory to 1900 with around three hundred exhibits, and an exhibition of archaeological finds from the nearby Caracupa Necropolis. Admission to the museum is free every weekend and every day in August.

The most important events are the evocative re-enactment in period costumes of the Battle of Lepanto through the streets of Sermoneta and the traditional Festival of the Polenta, the typical local dish, held on the Sunday nearest to the Feast of Sant’Antonio Abate (January 17). According to an ancient shepherd recipe, this speciality is cooked on a wood fire and served in copper pots still today.

It was Guglielmo Caetani who imported the corn seeds from America to Sermoneta in the sixteenth century. After the mass in the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, the sacred image of Sant’Antonio Abate is carried on solemn procession, accompanied by the “Fabrizio Caroso Band”.

At 12.30, polenta and bread are blessed and then distributed with sausages to the participants. The celebrations end at 3 pm with the performance of the “Ducato Caetani flag-wavers of Sermoneta”.

For lovers of outdoor sports, a canoe excursion along the Cavata River is a must. Then, through a path surrounded by nature, we can reach sparkling springs, and come across ancient artefacts of great historical, cultural and religious interest.

Sermoneta, located along the Appia Pedemontana stretch of the Via Francigena del Sud, has been awarded the Orange Flag Certification.