Baiano: Churches, History and Hazelnut Cuisine

Baiano combines sacred art, local history and a cuisine in which hazelnuts play a recognizable role. The town includes several churches, the rione d’e Vesune district and the Festa della Nocciola. Alongside the buildings, this also places a local festival and culinary connection at the center.

Churches and Sacred Art

The Chiesa di Santo Stefano di Baiano dates back to 1586. It houses a wooden statue of Santo Stefano Protomartire and has a main altar made of polychrome marble. The Chiesa di Santa Croce contains a panel painting of the Invenzione della Santa Croce from 1610 by Pompeus Landolfus. The Chiesa di Fontana Vecchia was built in the mid-17th century. The Chiesa Santi Apostoli Filippo e Giacomo is another religious building located in the historic center of Baiano.

Local History and Religious Connections

The rione d’e Vesune district is part of Baiano’s local history. It is also known by the names e Vesune and i Vesuni. Its origins are probably placed during Spanish rule; no confirmed year is associated with this. From the outset, the Eremo di Gesù e Maria was intended as a hermitage.

At the Chiesa di Fontana Vecchia, the Wednesday after Easter is associated with a picnic and a mass. The calendar reference therefore extends from a date after Easter to the Festa della Nocciola in September. For timing purposes, these two details relate to different contexts: one concerns a religious site, the other an event in Baiano.

Getting to Baiano

Baiano can be reached via the A16 motorway and the Baiano exit. For travel by train, the connection begins at Napoli Piazza Garibaldi station: from platform 1, take the Circumvesuviana towards Baiano. Those arriving from Naples by train should first look for the station and then proceed to platform 1 and the indicated direction. When travelling by car, the specific reference point is the Baiano exit.

Hazelnuts and Festa della Nocciola

The Festa della Nocciola is a regular event held in Baiano in September. At the Festa della Nocciola, Pasta al Pesto di Nocciola is offered as a typical dish. The Avellana or Irpinia hazelnut is considered a gastronomic specialty of its region of origin. Mortarella is one of the varieties of this hazelnut. The connection with hazelnuts is therefore not limited to the festival’s name, but also appears in the dish Pasta al Pesto di Nocciola. Mortarella refers to a variety within the Avellana or Irpinia hazelnut.

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To the main travel overview: Avellino.