Stilo
Stilo, “Little Byzantium”. Among splendid noble palaces and Byzantine Churches, one experiences being in the “City of the Sun”.
Stilo
the Little Byzantium
Stilo is the most beautiful Byzantine village in Calabria, renamed ‘Little Byzantium’. Among splendid noble palaces and Byzantine Churches, one experiences being in the ‘City of the Sun’ conceived by Tommaso Campanella, who was born here in 1568.
The History
A small jewel at the foot of Mount Concolisno, in the Stilaro valley, right on the border between the Aspromonte National Park and the Calabrian Serre, overlooking the beautiful ‘Gelsonimi Coast’, born thanks to the refugees from Kaulon who took shelter here from the constant attacks of Saracen pirates.
They built a city here, naming it Stilida, and built high walls around it to make the place impregnable.
An area rich in caves, used since the 7th century A.D. by Greek hermits and monks, who then founded various monasteries in this area.
From the Norman Period onwards, until the Bourbon Reign, mining of the rich iron ore deposits in the area developed.
The Historical Centre
The Historical Centre of Stilo is among the best in Calabria for the way it has preserved evidence of the Byzantine and Norman era.
The Cattolica
The Cattolica of Stilo is a small religious building on the slopes of Mount Consolino. The term ‘Cattolica’ probably derives from the Greek ‘Katholikon’, indicating the place of worship of a monastic complex or the cultic reference centre for hermits who lived in the same area. This Byzantine-style monument was built at the behest of Eastern monks between the 10th and 11th centuries, unique for its peculiar and distinctive architecture, frescoes and inscriptions.
The Norman Castle
The Norman Castle, was built in 1072 AD by the conquerors of the village of Stilo. It was built by Roger the Norman in the second half of the 11th century. Despite its centrality over the centuries, it was abandoned in the 19th century. The central area of the castle was a chapel-church with a main altar and four altars adjacent to the walls of the building: today only parts of the load-bearing walls remain. It was surrounded by various defence works that made it impregnable, and several of these can still be identified along the Consolino hillside. Thanks to a recent restoration, the castle has once again become a point of interest, which can be reached thanks to a number of paths.
The Cathedral
The Cathedral of Stilo was erected in the 14th century and rebuilt, almost entirely in Baroque style, in the 18th century. The cathedral is located in the historical centre and housed a wooden bust-reliquary of San Vito, an 18th century crucifix, the altar of the Blessed Sacrament and the large altarpiece depicting the Madonna with Child and Saints, by Giovan Battista Caracciolo, known as Battistello.
