CAPRACOTTA
PROVINCE OF ISERNIA, REGION OF MOLISE
.
By Nancy DeSanti
The picturesque, oddly named small town of Capracotta is located about 45 kilometers northwest of Campobasso and about 25 kilometers north of Isernia. The town has approximately 871 inhabitants, known as Capracottesi. It is the second-highest municipality in central Italy at 1,421 meters (4,662 feet) above sea level. It is the highest comune in the southern Appennines.
The town became famous when it entered the record books on March 5, 2015, when some 101 inches of snow (over 8 feet!!) fell in 24 hours, setting a new world record, which is recognized by Guinness World Records. On the most remarkable day in the town’s history, Capracotta was hit with a polar blast in a blizzard aggravated by powerful wind gusts which forced residents to ski between houses and climb out of second-floor windows.
Capracotta panorama
Breaking a 1921 record set of 76 inches in Silver Lake, Colorado, incredible photos from inside Capracotta show walls of snow carved out from the fronts of doors and shops. Pictures taken of the village show residents digging through snow and shaking hands from inside the second floor of homes with others standing on the snow piled up outside windows.
Remarkably, the town is not located within the Alps — its susceptibility to massive dumpings of snow lies in its unique geography and location. It is close to the sea and sits exposed to cold fronts from the northeast, making it one of the snowiest areas of the world when measured in terms of snowfalls over short periods of time.
Record snowfall on March 5, 2015
The winter ski runs of Capracotta become beautiful country walks in the hotter months. There are over 130 kilometers of paths and routes mapped out for the visitor with itineraries designed to take visitors into the wild countryside surrounding the town. In summer it is possible to take walks within the pristine forests and visit the Giardino di Flora Appenninica (Garden of the Apennine Flora, a botanical garden of alpine flowers located at the base of Monte Campo, about 2 kilometers along the main road towards Prato Gentile. The garden
was established in 1963 for plant trials, abandoned for almost two decades, and reopened in 1997 as a collaboration between the municipality of Capracotta and the University of Molise. Although the garden contains some flower beds, it is primarily a natural area. The garden currently contains about 300 endemic species in habitats including beech forest, rocks and cliffs, scrub, and wetlands. It also contains about 200 species introduced from elsewhere in the south-central Apennine Mountains Capracotta literally means “cooked goat.” Legend has it that some Gypsies, also known as Roma, having decided to found a town of their own, offered to burn a goat as a sacrifice to their divinity.
The poor animal managed to escape from the pyre and took refuge in the mountains, where it died. And supposedly in that same spot where it was found, the new town was born. The coat of arms, representing precisely a goat running away from a pyre, also suggests the “test of fire” used by the Lombards. In fact, sacrificing goats was a custom of the Lombards. Other sources suggest that the name derives from the Latin “castra cocta,” a military camp protected by an “agger coctus,” a wall made of bricks. Historians think it is possible that a Roman detachment was stationed in these hills, considering the strategic location overlooking the valley of the Sangro.
Yet another theory is that the name derives from the Indo-European “cap” meaning high place and “kott” meaning rocky place — two obvious features that distinguish the landscape of Capracotta. Capracotta also holds one of the most typical of gastronomic festivals in the region on the first or second Sunday of August. It’s called the Pezzata and its origins are lost in time, but certainly stretch back some 5000 years. It takes place at a height of 1,600 meters at Prato Gentile. Local dancers in traditional costumes entertain the crowd while the shepherds prepare the “pezzata”, a dish of lamb and veal cooked on open fires.
This typical local dish is distinguished by its simplicity and easy availability of the ingredients necessary to enhance the flavor and keep the taste according to the ancient recipe of the shepherds. Capracottesi Nel Mondo was the name of a fund-raising campaign aimed at building a commemorative statue to all those who left Capracotta in Molise to seek fame, fortune and a better life elsewhere. The plan was eventually realized, and the statue was placed at the entrance to the town close to the Church of Madonna, thanks those Capracottesi who left their hometown and, through hard work and dedication, built their futures elsewhere. The statue is in bronze and two meters high.
What to See
• Giardino di Flora Appenninica
• Church of the Madonna
• Nearby Prato Gentille, a winter sports destination with over 40 kilometers of ski runs
Important Dates
•1st or 2nd Sunday in August — Pezzata gastronomic festival
Sources:
mail.google.com/mail/#label/ AMHS+A%26M+articles/ FMfcgxvzLhltwrLGhXHDBpHRZsBfQCXx
www.madeinsouthitalytoday.com/ caprarotta.php
www.deliciousitaly.com/molise-itineraries/ capracotta
Italiano
CAPRACOTTA
PROVINCIA DI ISERNIA, REGIONE MOLISE
Translated by Maddalena Borea
La pittoresca cittadina, dallo stranissimo nome di Capracotta, è a 45 chilometri da Campobasso e a 25 chilometri da Isernia, il suo capoluogo di regione. Conta poco meno di 900 abitanti, chiamati Capracottesi. Situata ad un’altezza di quasi millecinquecento metri dal livello del mare, sorge su una delle più alte cime degli Appennini.
Devenne famosa quando nel 2015 fu letteralmente sotterrata da più di cento pollici di neve, superando così’ il record mondiale. La neve fù tale, che la gente fu’ letteralmente costretta a sciare fuori dalle finestre delle loro case, in caso di necessità di uscire. La seconda più grande nevicata, di 76 pollici, si era verificata nel 1921 a Silver Lake Colorado. La suscettibilità di queste profuse nevicate di Capracotta è dovuta alla posizione della cittadina, esposta anche alle raffiche ventose che le vengono dal mare. D’estate i sentieri, che d’inverno erano rimasti inaccessibili, diventano mete di escursioni per il turista che cerchi il refrigerio dell’alta montagna, delle foreste e le attrazioni del Giardino della Flora Appennina, a due chilometri da Prato Gentile.
Una delle attrazioni principali nel Giardino della Flora Appenninica, è un giardino botanico di fiori alpini, situato ai piedi di Monte Campo, lungo la strada principale verso il Prato Gentile a Capracotta. Il Giardino inaugurato nel 1963, e trascurato per oltre due decadi, fù riaperto nel 1997 in collaborazione col comune di Capracotta e dell’Università del Molise. Benchè il Giardino contenga molte aiuole, e’ principalmente un’area naturale e spontanea. La bellezza del luogo consiste nella sua varietà: spiagge alberate, alture, colline, paludi. Il suo nome significa Capracotta.
Il luogo sarebbe stato trovato da zingari, che per ingraziarsi i Fati e le loro divinità, decisero di sacrificare loro una capra. Questa riusci a liberarsi dalla rovente pira. Trovò rifugio in un’area alberata, dove morì e dove sorse il centro abitato, conosciuto oggi col nome di Capracotta. Lo stemma della città, che rappresenta una capra in fuga da una pira, potrebbe suggerire un’usanza lombarda. Molto probabilmente anche i Romani avrebbere visitato quest’area e si sarebbero riparati con mura di mattoni conosciuti anche come “Cotti”.
La prima o la seconda settimana di agosto Capracotta tiene un festival gastronomico, chiamato Pezzata, le cui origini, che potrebbero risalire a 5,000 anni fa, sono perse nel tempo.Durante la Pezzata, preparata da pastori, secondo antiche ricette e con spezie e odori antichi, e consistente in agnello e vitello, cotti all’aperto sul fuoco, si svolgono balli folcloristici e giochi locali. “Capracottesi Nel Mondo” è il nome di una campagna che raccoglie fondi a beneficio dei Capracottesi nel mondo, perchè essi trovino successo e fortuna fuori dalla loro Capracotta. A tale scopo è stata eseguita e realizzata una statua di bronzo alta due metri, posta in prossimità della chiesa della Madonna. ❚
Attrazioni del luogo:
• Giardino della Flora Appenninica
• Chiesa della Madonna
• Vicino Prato Gentile, destinazione turistica con oltre 40 chilometri di piste da sci.
Date da ricordare:
• Prima e seconda domenica di Agosto — Sagra della pezzata gastronomica