Pentedattilo
Pentedattilo (five fingers), in fact, the name of this village recalls the large cliff that rises behind it and is reminiscent of the shape of a hand reaching towards the sky
Pentedattilo
the Ghost Town
Pentedattilo (five fingers), in fact, the name of this village recalls the large cliff that rises behind it and is reminiscent of the shape of a hand reaching towards the sky. The devil’s hand is also called for the towers that, especially at dawn, look like bloody fingers. A ghost town full of myth and legend.
The Legend
Two clashing noble families lived in the village: the Alberti and the Abenavoli. Baron Abenavoli fell in love with Antoinette Alberti, but the woman was already betrothed to the son of the viceroy of Naples. The baron, blinded by rage, entered the castle on Easter night and killed everyone, pardoning only Antonietta, who was kidnapped and taken to Montebello. The two were married after three days, but the marriage was later annulled by the Sacra Rota.
Legend has it that when the wind blows through the ‘devil’s fingers’, one can still hear the screams and moans of the people killed at the castle.
The village Wants To Be Reborn
This ghost town is just a few kilometres from Reggio Calabria and is immersed in a landscape of particular charm and fascination. Protected behind by mountains and nestled in the Vallata Sant’Elia among olive trees, broom and prickly pears as far as the eye can see.
The village of Pentedattilo became uninhabited towards the end of the 18th century following an earthquake, and was declared uninhabitable in 1971. Today, with a series of redevelopment projects, the village has come back to life.
A walk through the narrow streets of this small town is a special experience if you visit the shops of the small local artisans, each of whom will have a story about the town to tell and special artefacts to see.
A unique experience is a visit to the Pentidattilo Castle, built on the slopes of Mount Calvario, today it is just a pile of ruins dominating the entire town. Despite its appearance, the place retains all its charm, not least because the legend of Pentidattilo and its ghosts revolves around the fortress.
Strolling through the ghost town, shrouded in its magical silence, one can appreciate The Parish Church of Santi Corifei Pietro e Paolo, of Byzantine origin in which a tombstone of the Alberti family is preserved.
Wandering around the village again, one cannot fail to stop at the fresco of San Cristoforo: a late 19th century work by an unknown artist. It is located under a sloping rock spur, at the point where legend has it that St Christopher, in order to protect the inhabitants of the houses below, held up the boulder with his strength.
In order to keep local customs and traditions alive, the Museum of Popular Traditions was created, while the Small Bergamot Museum is dedicated to the typical citrus fruit of the area.
The village of Pentedattilo is one of the gateways to the Aspromonte National Park, and in particular to a visitor trail much appreciated by lovers of literature: the ‘Englishman’s Path’, in the footsteps of the writer Edward Lear, one of the protagonists of the Grand Tour in Calabria, and part of the official network of ‘Paths in Calabria’. “So magical that it makes up for any effort endured to reach it” wrote Edward Lear when he visited the place, and how can one argue with him.
