On Christmas Eve, in the homes of Campotosto, the meatless Christmas Eve table is dominated by a dish that brings together two opposites: salted cod arriving from afar, from northern ships, and the fruits of the mountain peasant pantry. Sweet salt cod emerges from a contrasting symphony of ingredients, from the slow cooking of the … Read more
Between the Upper Fino Valley and the Upper Tavo Valley, between Farindola and Arsita, lies the most vital centre for the creation of a mysterious sheep cheese that finds its second ally in the pig. Skilled female hands, through uninterrupted and delicate care, guide the journey of milk from milking in the stable to the … Read more
Prepared mainly during the winter season, for Carnival or the most important festive occasions, stróngole — called li strónghëlë in the local dialect — are a long, dense pasta with a wide and thick section, obtained from dough worked through vigorous and skilful movements of the wrist. Known throughout the Valle Siciliana, in San Pietro … Read more
In the rural districts overlooking Farindola, on the eastern foothills of the Gran Sasso, singing and agricultural work formed an indivisible unity. Bambina Miraglia recalls her mother Maria Salzetta, a master of peasant singing, and the groups of women and men of the last century who accompanied the hardships of wheat weeding, harvesting and olive … Read more
In his summer vegetable garden, overlooking the imposing ridge of Monte Camicia, the elderly farmer Angelo De Dominicis ties together the canes used to support tomato plants with a technique inherited from his forebears: the twisting and weaving of willow shoots, pruned and selected for the occasion, then soaked for several days in a water … Read more
Loved by Saint Francis of Assisi before the introduction of cocoa as a sweet with restorative and medicinal properties, and an essential presence at major festivities and wedding celebrations, the mostacciolo fills village kitchens with its penetrating aroma during the preparation of the dough and the baking. This fragrant and compact biscuit combines an intense … Read more
In the depths of the night on Good Friday morning, the statue of the Madonna Addolorata leaves the church of Sant’Agostino. It moves through the streets and alleyways of the city in search of her Son, followed by a composed multitude of devotees. From four o’clock until dawn, when the first light begins to illuminate … Read more
From house to house, along the narrow lanes of the village, the group of questua performers carries its devotional song when the sky has already darkened with the coming of evening. They enter the homes, greet those who welcome them, and announce the joyful news of the birth of Jesus, asking in return for offerings. … Read more
“E Dijesilla Dijesilla, salve salve consivilla / My Jesus, in great sorrow, you have been the Redeemer. The creature will rise again from its ancient burial / surpassing the living and the dead, and there before us he is just and strong.” This is the opening of the Dijesilla performed by Giannina Malaspina and Marino … Read more
The vegetable garden of Angelo De Dominicis, at the edge of the village, opens onto the mountain landscape dominated by the imposing profile of Monte Camicia; an intermediate “kingdom” in which human action exists in constant exchange with the surrounding environment. The naturalness of the elderly farmer’s gestures reflects an ecology of thought: supporting the … Read more