Overview
Lama dei Peligni is reached by a journey that points upwards, between hairpin bends and panoramas, overlooked by the Monte Amaro, the highest peak in the Maiella (and the second highest in Abruzzo, after Gran Sasso), which dominates the village from its 2793 metres.
As soon as you arrive, the sensation is that the air and light, flowing around you, seem almost liquid. And by chance the name 'Lama', derives from a pre-Latin term meaning 'land where water stagnates'.
Beautiful and famous, Lama dei Peligni, Orange Flag of the Italian Touring Club and literary setting for 'La figlia di Iorio' (Iorio's daughter), one of d'Annunzio's best-known tragedies, is not arrogant at all, as mountain communities are reserved and pragmatic for their own character. The fact that it is the land of the Apennine chamois makes it almost shy, like the friendly herbivore.
If you want to learn all about the bovidae, visit the 'Maurizio Locati' Visitor Centre, which houses a large section dedicated to it, equipped with educational panels and dioramas on the rock fauna of the Maiella National Park.
On the upper floor, you will also find an interesting archaeological section that allows you to retrace the history of the eastern slope of the Mother Mountain, from the present day to the Middle Ages and Prehistory.
Admire one of the oldest findings: the cast of the 'Maiella Man', found in hamlet named Fonti Rossi. It is, a woman buried in an oval pit in a folded position: examination of the remains, carried out using radiocarbon at Oxford, has dated them to around 4590 B.C. Moreover, in the centre, visit the 'Michele Tenore' Botanical Garden, which houses around 500 plants from the area, aviaries with birds of prey from recovery centres, the reconstruction of a Neolithic village and the Apennine Chamois wildlife area.
From here, you can also set off on excursion itineraries to the Tarì Refuge, or to discover the cave paintings, the hermitage of Grotta Sant'Angelo and the Cavallone Caves (check the website to verify openings and opening times). At the entrance to the village, you are welcome by the 16th century fountain in white Maiella stone, with other valuable architectural assets enriching the centre, such as the 16th century Baroni Tabassi Palace and the 19th century Verlengia Palace. Visit the ancient parish church, dating back to 1589, one of Abruzzo's few Renaissance religious monuments in basilica form. Since 2015, the church has been dedicated to the Infant Jesus, wrapped in white brocade bands embroidered with gold and placed in a silver and crystal urn behind the high altar.
The wax statue, which arrived in the village from Jerusalem in 1760, brought by Fra' Pietro Silvestri, born in Lama in 1702, immediately became an object of worship: every two years a costume re-enactment is staged to commemorate the arrival of the Holy Child in the village.
There is also much to taste in Lama dei Peligni, famous mainly for its sfogliatelle, delicacies of puff pastry filled with grape and black cherry jam, with cooked must, walnuts, and cocoa. Other typical recipes include 'sagne a tacconi', 'pallotte cac'e ove' and 'pizzelle'.
Taste everything and you will never want to leave.
What else to see:
- Umberto I Square
- The Church of San Pietro
- The Church of Maria SS. Della Misericordia (or Convent of Sant'Antonio)