Vetralla lies in the Tuscia Viterbese, at the foot of Mount Fogliano. It was inhabited by Etruscans, Romans, and Barbarians, who sacked it due to its proximity to Via Cassia, a stretch of the Northern Via Francigena.
The Vetralla Castle probably belonged to the Di Vico Family, whose member, Giacomo, was captured and then beheaded in Soriano nel Cimino. The Romanesque Church of San Francesco, erected around the year 1000 on the ruins of a pre-existing building, is decorated with various frescoes from the twelfth to the seventeenth century. The church also houses a crypt completely carved out of tuff and a presbytery preserving the white marble sarcophagus of Briobris Di Vico, son of Giovanni Di Vico II, who died in 1353 at just 33 years of age.
The Vetralla Town Hall – www.comune.vetralla.vt.it
The Vetralla Town Hall, built between 1731 and 1735 by the architect Barigioni, is listed in the Network of Lazio Historic Houses. The first-floor houses Roman and medieval marbles surmounted by the coats of arms of Pope Julius II della Rovere, Henry VIII Tudor, King of England and France, and Cardinal Christopher Bainbridge, the Archbishop of York, who assumed the jurisdiction over Vetralla in 1511. The Town Hall preserves magnificent frescoes, particularly in the current waiting room.
The Hermitage of San Girolamo in Vetralla
In the thick beech forest of Mount Fogliano, lies the Hermitage of San Girolamo, a place of intense yet simple spirituality. It is said that the site, completely carved into volcanic rock, was inhabited by Fra Girolamo Gabrielli, who, in 1525, retired here in meditation and penance.
The Wedding of the Tree in Vetralla – Facebook @comunedivetralla
On May 8, near the Convent of Sant’Angelo in Vetralla the Wedding of the Tree is celebrated. During the event, the mayor pronounces the fateful words “I do” in front of a tall turkey oak in the Selva del Fogliano, the bride, thus confirming the right of ownership of Mount Fogliano to the inhabitants of Vetralla. According to historians, in 1432, Pope Eugenio IV donated Mount Fogliano to the people of Vetralla, but the wedding has only been celebrated since 1470, for nearly five centuries. The tree is adorned with daffodils, primroses, and a white tulle veil, and the ceremony is accompanied by a band, knights and damsels in nineteenth century costume, and flag-wavers. Worth visiting is the Ecomuseum of Tuscia Rupestre, a geological, archaeological, and naturalistic museum spread across the municipalities of Barbarano Romano, Blera, Capranica, Vejano, Vetralla and San Giovanni in Tuscia.
The Tozzetti Viterbesi Hazelnut Biscuits
In early December, before the Christmas Holidays, Vetralla hosts the Tozzetto Festival, which celebrates the renowned hazelnut biscuits. The last day of the event is dedicated to the Christmas Parade and the eagerly awaited competition to enter the Guinness Book of Records with the longest tozzetto in the world. This biscuit, made with the Tonda Gentile Romana DOP Hazelnut, is served between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, best dipped in dessert wine after a meal.