#pentedattilo

Pentedattilo, Calabria, Italy

Photos by @edrisiauteri, @no.lda_ and @pieroquadrini

The wild and rugged Italian region of Calabria is known for its 500 miles of incredible coastline, sweet red onions and southern hospitality. It's also Stanley Tucci's ancestral homeland. Join Stanley, and his parents, for a trip to Calabria, this Sunday at 9p ET/PT on CNN #Searchingforltaly

The ghost town of Pentedattilo, the Devil's hand

Driving along the Ionian Coast, in the Italian southernmost region of Calabria, you can see the unusal peak of Monte Calvario sticking out like a sore thumb. In English its name is Mount Calvary, this is in reference to the place where Jesus was crucified. The suggestive aspect of this place doesn’t end here.

Going up the hill, the road narrows to a single winding ribbon of asphalt and a spectacular vista reveals itself: an enigmatic village built into the fingers of a giant stone hand at the edge of the breathtaking panorama of the sea and the Etna Volcano in the nearby Sicily.

The magical appearance of Pentedattilo is such that the Dutch artist Escher depicts it in a number of lithography when he journeyed in Calabria.

FIVE STONE FINGERS, THE DEVIL'S HAND

Its charm is already in the name: Pentedattilo, from the Greek penta daktilos, which means five fingers. According to the legend, the five stone fingers are often named the Devil’s Hand because the rocks flow with blood. You will enjoy the scenery, but once you set foot on one of the cobblestone alleyways and find yourself surrounded by empty houses nestled between sandstone rock and lush vegetation, you might overwhelmed by the sense of mystery that permeates this place. Pentedattilo is a tiny ghost town. Abandoned since the nineteenth century, yet it still retains its magic.

A TINY GHOST TOWN WITH A LONG HISTORY

But what is most striking is the quantity of prickly pears and unusual rocks that stick out everywhere and include some houses. While it is uninhabited today, Pentedattilo has a long history, in fact ithas Greek origins not only in its name. Founded in 640 BC, it had been a Calcidese colony, then a Fort controlling access to the upper part of Aspromonte. From 1660, it became part of a noble family estate. During the years, its property was transferred from a family to another as part of trades or legacies.

THE MASSACRE OF PENTEDATTILO

It was Easter in the year 1686. The Baron Bernardino Abenavoli had his heart set on marrying Antonietta Alberti, who had been born into the family of his archenemy. Not only was he in love with her, but a union between them might have helped heal the feud. Her father, the family’s patriarch, the Marquis Domenico Alberti, had recently died and her brother Lorenzo had just married Caterina Cortez, daughter of the Viceroy of Naples. This marriage brought Antonietta in contact with the son of the Viceroy, Don Petrillo Cortez, who also fell in love with her, asking her hand in marriage. Lorenzo, the new marquis, granted permission, much to the fury and indignation of the Baron Abenavoli.

The story reaches back many centuries in time. It has become a legend and is recounted with variations, but the thrust is roughly the same. The tale tells of two noble families. The Alberti family were marquises of Pentedattilo and residents of the local castle, while the Abenavoli family were barons of the nearby town of Montebello Ionico. As often seems to be the case with neighboring landowners, they didn’t get along and harbored a longstanding dispute with regard to property borders. Romantic interest pushed the conflict way over the edge.

Basta! (Enough is enough.) The baron snapped, and on Easter night, the 16th of April in 1686, he and his group of armed men, entered the castle with the help of Giuseppe Scrufari, servant and traitor to the Alberti family. The slaughter began with the Marquis Lorenzo Alberti, who is said to have been shot with a harquebus (predecessor to the musket), which either didn’t do the job or the multiple stabbings that followed were posthumously inflicted out of sheer rage.

Baron Abenavoli and company didn’t stop there, however. They weren’t satisfied until almost the entire enemy household was killed, including a 9-year-old younger brother. The heinous incident is known as the Strage degli Alberti or the Slaughter of the Albertis.

FLIGHT FROM PENTEDATTILO

The baron spared the object of his desire, Antonietta Alberti, and married her a few days later. Her recently intended, Don Petrillo Cortez was taken in hostage, most likely in fear of his father, the Viceroy. Abenavoli holed up with his captives in his castle at Montebello Ionico until forced to flee when the Viceroy sent down a military convoy from Naples. Many of his cohorts were captured and executed, but the slippery baron managed to escape, running off first to Malta and then Vienna.

He left Antonietta behind in a convent. She eventually had her marriage annulled and lived out the rest of her time, what must have been quite haunted, in a nunnery in Reggio Calabria. The baron carried on a new life for a while as an officer in the Austrian army, and finally died in battle.

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Pentedattilo, Calabria, Italy