A Taste of Nature
NORCIA
On the main square are visible the oldest and most important buildings in Norcia. In the middle of the square is the statute of San Benedetto; while framing the square is the Castellina, the monumental fortress designed by Vignola in 1554 and today home of the Museo Civico e Diocesano, civil and religious museum; the Palazzo Comunale,Town Hall, with its double loggia; the Basilica di San Benedetto, erected on 1st-century Roman remains, with a Gothic facade from the 14th century, and in the crypt can be seen the ruins of a Roman building that according to tradition was the paternal home of Saints Scholastica and Benedict; and the Portico delle Misure, the measuring porch, built in the 1500s as a covered cereals market. The Palazzo dei Cavalieri di Malta, the Knights of Malta palace, presently the Museo dell’Arte Contadina, farm life museum; and the church of Sant’Agostino built in the 14th century.
SIBILLINI NATIONAL PARK
Norcia is situated at the centre of the Sibylline Mountains National Park: the town is surrounded by mountains of more than 2000 mt, a day-trippers and skiers paradise. Between the mountains, on large flat amphitheatres are raised prized crops (most famous are the lentils from the plain of Castelluccio) and a wide variety and quantity of animals (such as hogs for the production of Norcia’s renowned delicatessen products).
Not far from the town, on the wide open plains of Castelluciio, can be found the European School of Free Flight; the many trails in the National Park are perfect for hikes, horse riding and mule treks; the Sordo and Corno rivers offer rafting and canyoning, while the striking rock faces, the Karst grottoes and the gorges that are characteristic of the whole Valnerina area are ideal for free-climbing and speleology.
Places in the vicinity that merit a visit are: the winter sports and day trip centre, Forca Canapine (20 km from Norcia, at 1541 metres); the Castelluccio high plains (Pian Perduto, Piano Piccolo and Piano Grande, a large Karst basin that in Spring is covered with beautiful alpine flowers; Monte Porche (2235 metres) with a striking panorama onto the Sibylline Mountains and the Abruzzo Mountains; Monte Vettore (2476 metres), with Lago di Pilato lake and the Grotta della Sibilla, Sybil’s Grotto; and the Necropoli della pianura di Santa Scolastica with findings from the Iron Age to Roman times.