Scary Statues and Mysterious Figures

pathway from Vitorchiano

Tuscia (or Etruria) located one hour north of Rome and a half hour from Civitavecchia port makes a perfect escape from the  tourist crowds. We residents enjoy a laid back lifestyle, excellent food and wine as well as peace, calm and the many off beat places such as the well known Sacro Bosco or Monster Park of Bomarzo.

Nearby are several other sites with strange stone sculptures, fountains and  the remains of elegant gardens-often hidden away in the underbrush or valleys. 

Photos by F. Micheletti 

stone heads Vitorchiano 

rock hewn cave in the Vitorchiano valley

Just beneath the town of Vitorchiano a steep trail zig-zags down into a verdant valley.

Trekking with CAI excursion to see the sculptures near Vitorchiano                 Thanks to F. Micheletti for photos 

 Here trekkers literally trip over the  mysterious monumental sculptures created in 1990 by a team of stone carvers who were invited to Vitorchiano from Easter Island, far away in the Pacific Ocean. 

Easter Island  head in Vitorchiano

Other weird and wonderful stone figures date back to the Renaissance and 16th century and were created by native sculptors (or captive Turkish ones??)  to awe visitors of local nobility, such as these in a wild setting just outside the town of Viterbo. 

moss covered fountain with   human heads spouts 

female figure, near Viterbo

Papacqua fountain figure, Soriano

In plain sight in the town of Soriano nel Cimino is the Papacqua fountain next to Palazzo Chigi-Albani and its many intriguing  stone figures which art critics have been trying to interpret for centuries.

Papacqua fountain in Soriano nel Cimino 

These scary statues are just a few of the many fascinating, little known aspects of the Tuscia area  that await visitors, especially  artists, anthropologists and those who enjoy the unusual. 

For more about these and other  mysterious sites of central Italy, between Tuscany and Umbria, check out my website, use the search bar of the blog and read my latest two books on the area.

Don't forget to share with your friends using the Twitter and Facebook icons here below.   

Outings for April: peonies, pyramids and a potter's cave

water fountain, Vitorchiano 

Rome residents  and visitors  have traditionally used a series of “free days “  in April  (April 21-Birthday of Rome,  April 25^th - Liberation Day and  May 1^st –Workers’ Day) to  create mini-vacations known as  ponti.  

The cloud-laden skies  and  sudden showers of  the past weeks have made  it difficult, however, to travel without an umbrella.  

Rain or shine, grab an umbrella, your walking shoes and take a day trip to  one of these special places near  Viterbo and Rome. 

The first and easiest outing,  is  to Centro Botanico Moutan, a  private  garden open to the public in April and May. 
Acres of  magnificent  Chinese peonies extend over the hillsides,  delighting  the senses .

Lorenza, Fabio, Letizia, Fulvio  & Carla 

The Centro Botanico offers free entry and  guided tours plus  a colorful, relaxing café and bookshop .  

It is a perfect place to relax, drink in the beauty and perfumes of thousands of flowering shrubs and find inspiration for  garden design. 
The owners produce a line of garden furniture as well as an array of beauty products  and perfumes made from the peony flowers.

The colorful  cafe at the peony gardens 

If you can find a place to park near  Vitorchiano’s  centro storico, take advantage and  plunge into the Middle Ages with a walk among  the  12^th century buildings  of  the intact medieval town, historically  allied to  Rome and enemies of nearby Viterbo.

charming medieval  streets of Vitorchiano 

bell tower of the City Hall 

Orsini Palace now the Town Hall 

The next exit on the highway is Bomarzo where  you can visit the iconic Sacro Bosco/Park of the Monsters  and the hilltop town.   

Be sure you take the new elevator to the upper part of town and visit  the  Orsini Palace.

the urban elevator of Bomarzo 

For intrepid explorers there is even an  Etruscan pyramid. 

This itinerary has an Indiana Jones   level of difficulty- more arduous  than  the  Etruscan sites of Grotta Porcina and  Norchia in nearby Vetralla. 

Salvatore our guide to the pyramid 

A local guide who knows the intricate paths in the  thick woods is a must. 

We were lucky to be accompanied by  Salvatore, who helped archeologists recuperate the sacred  Etruscan site. 
It had been used as shelter by generations of local farmers but was unknown to scholars until recently . 

Pro loco office in  Bomarzo 

A further reason to visit Bomarzo is the Festival dedicated to Sant’Anselmo, the town’s  patron, on April 25th . 
Festivities include a palio horse race, and distribution of the traditional sweet bread, Biscotto di Sant Anselmo. 

rock formations  

For in town exploration,  you can  follow in the footsteps of  the group of young law students  from 17 different countries who visited Vetralla this week for an end-of-course outing . 

Bill and students  in Checco Lallo's workshop-cave

Entrance to potter's cave , wearing the ancient  apron 

students from Liberia and other countries

Besides learning about the city’s  English connections, they visited the  cave-like  pottery workshop  of Checco Lallo, which has remained untouched  over the centuries. 

Christian  gets a lesson from Francesco 

Francesco, the last of the Vetralla potters' dynasty  known as Checco Lallo,  showed them the  traditional craft of  pottery. 



They celebrated the end of their  course of studies with an evening dedicated to  good food, music and the hospitality of a town with a long, intricate  history. 

International law students visiting in Vetralla