Discovering the Abbey of San Giorgio, a milestone of the Norman itinerary in Sicily

If you are ready to embark on a journey into the distant Middle Ages to live an exciting experience, you cannot fail to visit the ruins of a Norman abbey, one of a kind, immersed in the Gratteri wood.

It is one of the oldest historical monuments in the Madonie village, half an hour’s walk from the town, through an unspoiled natural landscape. The appointment is at the “Passo della Scala” – under the church of the Crucifix – from where a path begins which, for some decades, has been renamed the Via dei Premostratensi.

And you arrive in a lonely place, steeped in stories and legends, where superhuman peace prevails but which, at the time of the foundation of the monastery, must have been a strategic point of intersection between two Roman roads very frequented by travelers and pilgrims.

The site, today, is a favorite destination for numerous Italian and foreign visitors who go to the discovery of what might seem, at first glance, a ruin like many others, but which in reality is a milestone of the Norman Way in Sicily.

The church of the monastery of San Giorgio is in fact a cultural asset of singular importance in the Sicilian panorama from a historical, artistic, spiritual and anthropological point of view. Its origins date back to the century. XII and are located in a very complex and, at the same time, intriguing period of medieval history.

A priory founded by the Normans and entrusted to a French order, the Premonstratensian monks, the only example in Sicily and then, in 1300, it was inherited by the Hospitallers of Jerusalem, better known as the Knights of Malta, who held it for several centuries as a commendam.

We will tell you a fascinating story of a Norman monument where real events and singular legends blend together in a highly evocative setting that make that of Gratteri a historical document of the Norman period ready to be included within the UNESCO sites of Sicily.

For more details on the excursion and on the itinerary map, visit the following link: eventi.visitgratteri.com

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