The Unesco canditature
Among the places candidated for the Site “Italia Langobardorum. Centres of power and Cult ( 568-774 d.C.)” that are proposed to be registered in the list of World Heritage of Unesco, there is also the Sanctuary of San Michele, in Monte Sant’Angelo. The events of this Cave, designed by the Archangel as his home on earth, consitute the fulcrum and are indissolubly tied to the history of the city.Among the most faithful and enthusiastic devouts of Saint Michele we must ermember the Longobards of the South, who during the 7th Century, decided to elevate the Cave of Monte Sant’Angelo to the dignity of their national Sanctuary, transforming it soon, starting from the 5th Century and along the path of the “Langobardorum Sacred Path” a continuous destination and place of worship for many pilgrims, humble and famous, like leaders, princes, sovereigns and pontiffs.
According to the legend, the first of the appearances of San Michele dates back to the 8th of May 490 (of the Bull); the following one in 492 (of the Victory), in 493 (of the Dedication) and finally the fourth and last in 1656 (of the Plague). From these prodigious events there started a diffusion of the Michaelic Cult in the western world and the “sacred mountain” became the main centre of propagation. In the following Centuries after the fall of the Longobards, Normans, Swabians and Angevins started following the Michaelic Cult and the Garganic sanctuary, and they carried out important works of renovation, that changed the original architectural aspect of the top of the sanctuary and enriched it with new decorations and huge treasures. Still today the sanctuary is a location of continuous pilgrimage that represents the formal ritual connotations that go back the the Longobard Age.
Among the places candidated for the Site “Italia Langobardorum. Centres of power and Cult ( 568-774 d.C.)” that are proposed to be registered in the list of World Heritage of Unesco, there is also the Sanctuary of San Michele, in Monte Sant’Angelo. The events of this Cave, designed by the Archangel as his home on earth, consitute the fulcrum and are indissolubly tied to the history of the city.Among the most faithful and enthusiastic devouts of Saint Michele we must ermember the Longobards of the South, who during the 7th Century, decided to elevate the Cave of Monte Sant’Angelo to the dignity of their national Sanctuary, transforming it soon, starting from the 5th Century and along the path of the “Langobardorum Sacred Path” a continuous destination and place of worship for many pilgrims, humble and famous, like leaders, princes, sovereigns and pontiffs.
According to the legend, the first of the appearances of San Michele dates back to the 8th of May 490 (of the Bull); the following one in 492 (of the Victory), in 493 (of the Dedication) and finally the fourth and last in 1656 (of the Plague). From these prodigious events there started a diffusion of the Michaelic Cult in the western world and the “sacred mountain” became the main centre of propagation. In the following Centuries after the fall of the Longobards, Normans, Swabians and Angevins started following the Michaelic Cult and the Garganic sanctuary, and they carried out important works of renovation, that changed the original architectural aspect of the top of the sanctuary and enriched it with new decorations and huge treasures. Still today the sanctuary is a location of continuous pilgrimage that represents the formal ritual connotations that go back the the Longobard Age.
Atttribuzione
