Discover Cosentini: Carnival, Churches and the Alta Via del Monte Stella
Accommodation in Cosentini
Cosentini is a destination for travelers who want to experience Italian local history not only through buildings, but also through living traditions and paths. Carnival, wine and olive culture, churches and the Alta Via del Monte Stella offer different points of focus.
File:Cosenza, duomo, interno, cappella del ss. sacramento, lapide ai patrioti cosentini del 1844.jpg
Photo: Sailko via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Carnival between masks, music and community
The Carnival of Cosentini is an annual tradition involving the entire community. The program includes a masked procession, the Ballata di Zeza and a tarantella. Pulcinella, Zeza, Vincenzella and Zì Ron Nicola appear in the Ballata di Zeza; a choir and traditional folk music accompany the performance.
Carnival also includes sharing food and wine around the fire, during which Carnuluvaro is burned. The tradition thus combines theater, music and communal celebration with a culinary aspect.
Palmenti and evidence of agriculture
Historical agriculture is also present in Cosentini. The palmenti are large stone containers located outdoors, carved from monoliths and used by various growers to press grapes. During the Borgia period, vineyards, fig groves and olive groves were established; wooden olive presses have been preserved as evidence of historical agricultural activity.
The Borgia family acquired the old baronial palace in Cosentini and had it restored.
Santa Maria del Valloncello and the Church of the Assumption
Below Cosentini, a chapel dedicated to Santa Maria del Valloncello existed from the 14th century onward. Santa Maria del Valloncello may originally have been an old hermitage. The renovated church at the site of Santa Maria del Valloncello is now dedicated to the Assunta, the Assumption of Mary into heaven.
The Church of the Assumption in Cosentini has a three-part façade in a rational neoclassical style. A pediment crowns the façade, which is articulated by four pilasters. Every year on August 15, the statue of the Assunta is carried from dawn until evening to other churches and chapels in the surrounding area, then returns to its church.
For you, if you do not want to limit culture to individual sights, the appeal lies in the combination of different layers: Carnival is shaped by the community, the palmenti and olive presses point to cultivation and processing, while the sacred sites lead from a 14th-century chapel to the renovated Church of the Assumption.
Hiking on the Alta Via del Monte Stella
For active days, the Alta Via del Monte Stella follows a ridge that offers particularly impressive views. A hike on the Alta Via can begin in Cosentini and lead through the Montanari area to the provincial road.
The two aspects complement each other: on the one hand, the ridge shapes the character of the trail; on the other, the possibility of starting the hike in Cosentini is relevant to your planning. This allows you to explore the village through both its festivals and buildings and a section of the Alta Via del Monte Stella.
More destinations for planning your trip to Italy
Marmorata, Felitto, Teggiano, Montecorvino Rovella, Trinita, Santa Maria Di Castellabate, Torraca, Raito
To the main travel overview: Salerno.
