The mill and the Pantocrator
Here is another of the hidden jewels of Cilento, million miles from the chaos and mass tourism: the village of San Biase, less than 300 inhabitants, more than a thousand years of history in the midst of a fairytale nature.
Its territory has been important since ancient times, when it was the borderline between the Greeks of the Kora of Elea and the Lucanians. The Palistro river that flows there was one of the routes essential for trade that connected the interior to the coast.
The village proper was founded in the Middle Ages. Here too there is the very strong sign of Italo-Greek monasticism, as can be clearly seen from the name that is an agionym: Saint Blaise of Sebaste was an Armenian bishop, venerated as a saint even today by both Catholics and Orthodox, and the church dedicated to him was the first nucleus of the village.
The presence of the Basilians has left magnificent testimonies.
They started the cultivation of mulberry plants, essential for creating economy through the breeding of silkworms: this enriched with another species the already very rich native vegetation, where chestnut, olive and cherry groves stand out.
But the most beautiful testimony is undoubtedly in the church: an impressive series of frescoes, on which stands out a beautiful Christ Pantocrator, the most flawless signature of the Greek-Eastern orbit.
This, in passing, next to a 1600 canvas of the Neapolitan school.
The architecture of the village is extremely fascinating: noble palaces, sign of its richness, arches, stone houses.
And like a hidden treasure, a beautiful water mill from the 1400s: fed by the waters of the Palistro river, it is an attraction that alone is worth a visit, but placed in such an evocative context, becomes if possible even more beautiful.
The excursion offers a truly different half day from the usual: a short distance from the main coastal resorts (Casal Velino, Acciaroli, Pioppi, Ascea, Pisciotta, Palinuro, Marina di Camerota), a path outside the usual schemes perfect for relaxing and regenerating amidst the pristine beauty.
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