Monte Sant’Angelo, Italy

Component part of the Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.) World Heritage site

Gargano National Park (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

Located on northern Puglia’s Gargano promontory, the Sanctuary of St Michael in Monte Sant’Angelo is, of all the sanctuaries dedicated to the Archangel Michael, one of the world’s oldest. The saint is said to have appeared here three times from 490 A.D. onwards. 

Monte Sant'Angelo (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

Since then, the site has been a destination for pilgrims, saints, kings, popes, historians and crusaders, and is one of the seven properties across the Italian peninsula which are included in the World Heritage site of The Longobards in Italy, Places of Power, 568 - 774 A.D.

World Heritage site (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

Granted this official status by UNESCO in 2011, these properties are a testament to the achievements of the Longobards, a Germanic people who migrated from northern Europe to Italy in the 6th century and developed their own specific culture as they ruled over vast territories.

Sanctuary of St Michael (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

The Sanctuary of St Michael was actually founded before the arrival of the Longobards, however it was adopted by them shortly after they conquered Gargano, a region where worship of the Archangel Michael was prevalent.

Statue of St. Michael the Archangel (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

Pagan in origin, they had, by then, converted to Christianity, and they placed particular importance on the worship of this saint who had some similar attributes to Wotan, considered by the Germanic people to be their supreme god. 

Sanctuary of St Michael (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

This sacred shrine to St Michael Archangel consists of a natural grotto and a complex of overlapping structures, which were built in subsequent periods. 

View on the campanile (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

From the upper level of the two-level sanctuary, an octagonal bell tower rises 27 metres into the sky, its eight-sided design reminiscent of the World Heritage site, Castel del Monte, also in Puglia. It was named the Torre Angioina, having been built during the Angevin reign.

The staircase (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

Carved into the rock in the 13th century, an 86-step staircase descends from the entrance portal to the Porta del Toro, a doorway so named because of the bull (toro) which is depicted in the fresco above it. The doorway leads into a porticoed courtyard.

St. Michael's Cave (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

Beyond the courtyard, the magnificent Bronze Doors, cast in Constantinople in 1076, open into the basilica with the imposing Grotta di San Michele Arcangelo at its centre.

Rocky vault (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

An enthralling sight, it is a natural cave with a rocky vault which houses the main altar, the episcopal throne, the silver cross of Frederick II, the baptismal font and the marble statue of St Michael.

Sacred cave (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

The historical and architectural importance of the cave is such that it was featured in a list of ten sacred caves from around the world in National Geographic magazine.

Via Michaelica, a pilgrimage route (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

After its foundation in 490 A.D., the Sanctuary of St Michael became the centre point of the Via Michaelica, a pilgrimage route across Europe and the Middle East which connected monasteries dedicated to St Michael, from Skellig Michael in Ireland to Mount Carmel in Israel.

Homo, Angelus, Deus (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

In the Middle Ages, the itinerary of spiritual redemption known as Homo, Angelus, Deus included a visit to the grotto in Monte Sant’Angelo (Angelus), as well as to the tombs of St Peter and St Paul in Rome and St James in Spain (Homo), and to the Holy Land in Palestine (Deus).

Inscriptions (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

Traces of the many pilgrims who visited the site are still visible today in the inscriptions which are found throughout the underground corridors and the grotto. 

The Shrine (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

One of the more famous St Michael devotees is St Francis of Assisi – the Patron Saint of Italy – who walked all the way from the Region of Umbria to visit this shrine. 

Over the centuries, several popes have also visited the Sanctuary of the Archangel on the Gargano. The last one was Pope John Paul II in 1987. 

Heritage of the Longobards in Italy (2011) by Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.)UNESCO World Heritage

Along with the six other properties that make up this serial World Heritage site, the Sanctuary of St Michael in Monte Sant’Angelo represents the quintessence of the remaining built and artistic heritage of the Longobards in Italy today.

It also serves as a clear testimony to their role in the establishment of the beginnings of the medieval European world and of Western Christianity.

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This exhibit was created by Pugliapromozione, the Puglia Region Tourism Board: 
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Credits: Story

More on the Monte Sant'Angelo, component part of Longobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568-774 A.D.) and World Heritage: whc.unesco.org/en/list/1318

Photos: Bianca Talaba, Mirabilia Sistemi, Nikater, Elio Pallard, Vanda Biffani, Pasquale Gatta, Holger Uwe Schmitt, Franco Cappellari, Nick Warner

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
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