San Vito lo Capo is...

ne of the most famousBeaches of the island issituated in a basin at the footof Mount Monaco, at theedge of the small peninsularwhich encloses the gulf ofCastellammare. The town,of marit ime tradit iondeveloped around an ancient

O sanctuary-fortress dedicatedto San Vito. Its territory, inaddition to the suggestivebeach, which is full of peoplein August, includes the lesserknown l o c a l i t i e s o fCastelluzzo and Macari.Moreover, a large part of theOriented Natural Reserve

of the Zingaro falls into theS a n V i t o L o C a p omunicipality and can bevisited on foot. For someyears, the town has beenhost to the Cous Cous Festand, more recently, thewine and food event Tempuri Capuna.

View of the town Beach with small port RNO Zingaro

History

he history of the townis linked to Saint Vito who,according to tradition,passed through Egitarso, orEgitallo, the Roman namefor the site, during the IIIcentury A.D., when he wasforced to leave his cityMazara, together with histutor Modesto and wet-nurse Crescenzia: he livedin the caverns of the area,

T dedicating himself to prayer,fed by a crow like theDesert Fathers. It is thoughtthat, after the martyrdomof the Saint around 300 A.D,at the mouth of the riverSele, a small church was builtin Egitarso, which wasrenovated in the XVcentury, and later becomea sanctuary-fortress, on thewishes of the inhabitants of

Erice in whose district theterritory of San Vito fell, togive shelter to pilgrims andprotect them from pirateattacks. The town, which hasbeen a municipality since1952, developed betweenthe XVIII and the XIXcen tur y, a round thesanctuary, as a small fishingvillage under the control ofErice.

Aedicule of Santa Crescenzia Sanctuary Sanctuary, San Vito The Martyr crypt

Landscape

mmersed in a landscapesurrounded by high rocks,small beaches and pointedreefs, caves, bagli (ruralfortified structures) andtowers, San Vito welcomesthe v i s i tor wi th thestupendous coastline ofMacari and the bastion ofMount Monaco with itspeak of the same namewhich, depending from

where you look at it,resembles a priest in prayeror a running dog. From thesummit of the mountain,which can be reached bypathways, seeing the viewof the three gul fs ofCastellammare, San Vito andCofano together and, ondays of high visibility ofthe island of Ustica is aunique and unrepeatable

experience . From theterrace of the sanctuarythere is an incredible viewover the three kilometrelong beach, the blue sea andthe town the regular layoutof which, with low housesand straight, parallel roadscan be appreciated. On thesplendid rocky coast, risethe XVI century towers ofthe island's defence system.

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Gulf of Macari Mount Monaco RNO Zingaro

Nature

he extremely limpid seaand the splendid beach offine sand, made up offragments of red coral, arethe protagonists of thelandscape and the economyof the town; thanks to them,the town has been includedin the 300 Italian towns withthe most beautiful beachesand has also received theBandiera blu - blue flag ofEurope. To the east there

T a re h i g h c o a s t l i n e soverlooking the sea, whichare the prelude to thewondrous coast of the laRiserva Naturale Orientatadello Zingaro - OrientedNature Reserve of theZingaro, which protectsone of the most beautifuland integral coastlines ofthe is land, stretchingfor about 7 kilometres asfar as Scopello, and is

characterized by a splendidMediterranean scrub. Noless interesting is thewestern side of the coast,which is lower and ruggedwith reefs, with Cala Rossaand Cala Mancina, the reefof Isulidda, a few metresfrom the rocky coast andthe caves. An area of greatinterest as regards natureand landscape is MountMonaco, 532 metres high.

RNO Zingaro, Marinella cove RNO Zingaro, Capreria cove RNO Zingaro, Chamaerops humilis

Traditions

t is popular belief thatSan Vito had tried in vainto convert the inhabitantsof the village Conturrana,who were punished by Godfor not having listened tohis preaching, with anavalanche which buried thevillage: it is said that thevillage is buried under anenormous mass of stones

in Valanga district. Thea e d i c u l e o f S a n t aCrescenzia, however, is toremember where theavalanche ended, saving SanVito, Modesto and the sameSaint, who ignored God'sorder to not turn aroundso as not to see thepunishment, and turned tostone from the shock:

according to an ancientpopular belief, to get overu scantu (fear), you shouldthrow a stone into theaedicule. In the sea of SanVito, until 1968 nets werecast for the traditionalmattanza, the crude captureof the tuna fish which, inspring, are numerous in theGulf of Castellammare.

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Aedicule of Santa Crescenzia Secco tuna warehouse

Religion Rememberence Bonds he town dedicatesimpressive celebrations toits Saint from the 13th tothe 15th of June, withsinging, musical and sportingevents, parades, exhibitionsand a suggestive historic re-enactment of the landing ofthe Saint accompanied bySa i n t s Modes to andCrescenzia who, landing onthe beach at sunset to thesound of the sirens of the

T boats of the fishing fleetand to the launching ofmulticoloured rockets,move towards the townaccompanied by musicbands. The picturesqueprocession through thestreets of the town andfireworks close the event.A n o t h e r t r a d i t i o n a lreligious appointment is onthe 18th and 19th of March,on the occasion of the

festivities for San Giuseppe(Saint Joseph), with theprocession of the statueof the Saint, the bonfires(vampe) in various areasof the town, and the lunchoffered to the SacredFamily, impersonated bythree people in a housewhere a votive altar hasbeen set up, decoratedwith characteristic loavesof bread.

Landing of San Vito Procession of San Vito Saint Joseph, vampe

Art

nside the sanctuary in thechapel of San Vito enrichedwith local marble and withstatues by Orazio Ferraro(1624-1628) is situated, inthe centre, the statue of theSaint, a fine work of theGagini school from 1587,with episodes of his lifelinked to his stay in thetown, engraved in the base.

The particularly smoothappearance of the feet isdue to the secular customof the pilgrims of kissing thefeet to show their devotion.Contemporary works of artare fittingly used as sacreddecoration: the altar and thesculpture depicting San Vitoby Capri Otti, both inbronze and the Crocefisso by

Mario Cassisa in the samematerial , and the twocandlesticks in marble byIbrahim Kodra. The modernsimulacrum in marble of SanVito (2005) on the door ofthe sanctuary is by MartinEmschermann and thebronze statue of the Saint(1999) on the jetty is by TotiTaormina.

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Sanctuary, chapel of San Vito Sanctuary, San Vito, Capri Otti Sanctuary, San Vito, M. Emschermann

Archaeology

he presence of man inthe territory is documentedby prehistoric petroglyphs,paintings and lithic materialfound in numerous caves.Some incisions are visible onthe walls of the Uzzo cave,in the Zingaro NatureReserve, in which fragmentsof vases, flints, obsidian andover twelve human skeletons

T and animal bones have alsobeen found. In the area ofPiana di Sopra, the cave ofthe Caval l i conservesNeolithic paintings in red,with labyrinth like designs,s u n s y m b o l s a n danthropomorphic figureswhile the so called cave ofthe Racch io , with anilluminated anti-cavern in

front of it, contains linearincisions of presumably magiccharacter and two cavepaintings depicting deer. Astone's throw away from theex-tonnara there are ancientcetariae tubs, dating back tothe IV century B.C used tomake the delicacy garum (fishsauce), which the Romansloved to eat.

Cavalli cave Emiliana cave Garum tubs

Monuments

n the main square thesanctuary-fortress rises.Robust and impressive in itsfortress-like appearance, it isdedicated to San Vito andwas presumably built in theXV century, encompassingthe structure of a pre-existingearly Christian church andreinforced in the XVIcentury; recent restorations(2003) have brought to light

a hypogeum with two wellswhich was probably for culticactivities. The chapel of SantaCrescenzia is a small,suggestive building in aquadrangular layout, anor i g i n a l examp le o farchitecture of the end ofthe XV century - beginningXVI century, with Arabic,Norman and Goth icinfluences. And with a

particular solution of thecupola supported by a fannedstairwell. Along the coast theSciere, ‘Mpisu and Isuliddatowers rise, built in the XVIcentury to defend frompirates who infested theMediterranean sea; In theGolfo del Secco there is thetuna fish warehouse on landwhich is now in disuse,documented since 1412.

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Sciere tower Secco tuna warehouse Mpisu tower

Museums Science Education

he museum of the sanctuaryholds silverware, liturgicalfurnishings and sacred worksof art linked to the cult andto the pilgrimages in honourof Saint Vito. The woodenstatue of the Immacolata, byan unknown Sicilian sculptorof the XVI century, comingfrom the Secco tonnara (tunawarehouse) is worthparticular attention. Also

T exhibited are donations fromvillages in Italy linked to thefigure of Saint Vito includingthe centa, an ex voto (votiveoffering) of the shepherds ofSan Gregorio Magno, madewith wax candles. In the wallhangings room, a green velvetchasuble from the end of theXVI century stands out. In SanVito there is a centre whichfor the last few years has been

organising international schoolcamps of underwatera rchaeo log y, pu t t i n ginto practice a scientificmethod through whichoceanographic surveys,excavations, plans andrecovering of materials,creation of scuba divingi t inerar ies , and a l socataloguing, and classificationof findings are carried out.

Museum of the Sanctuary Museum of the Sanctuary Museum of the Sanctuary

Typical produce

he typical craft produceis connected to the marineand agricultural activity ofthe territory, the fishermencreate conzi, long fishing linesto which hooks are attached,cannizzi, palm branchesdestined to be anchored to

the sea bed, coppi, mobilenets, nasse, baskets whichfish cannot get out of onceinside; the curinari with fasthand movements make plaitsof the leaves of the dwarfpalm, creating the curina tomake bags, hats, fans of

ancient fashion and also thepanara, bread baskets madeout of olive and canebranches. This traditionalactivity is flanked by theworking of i ron andproduction of artist icceramics.

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Curinari Conzi

Wine and food

n San Vito, added to thesplendid aspects of itslandscape is the suggestionof a traditional cuisine inwhich fresh fish is alwayspresent; the local fleetscarry out, in fact, the so-called pesca artigianale, thatis, fishing just under thecoast, on small crafts duringthe night, particularly aimedat the capturing of mullet,

I sargo, umbrine, saddledbream, rock fish, octopus,squid, and lobster which areput on the market straightaway, first thing in themorning, directly in theharbour area. Busiati (busiatipasta), pane cunzatu (breadwith o i l , cheese andanchovies), pasta coi ricci -(pasta with sea urchins) arethe important dishes of a

simple and imaginativegastronomy, where couscous,of Arab origin, made frombran, steamed and dressedwith fish broth, is theabsolute protagonist.In thetown hamlet of Castelluzzo,renowned for its olivetrees, a perfumed andfragrant oil is producedwhich is perfect as acondiment for any dish.

Cous Cous Pasta with fish sauce Sea urchins

Shows and events

series of appointmentsare repeated regularly duringthe tourist season in SanVito Lo Capo. In the lastweek of September the CousCous Fest, an exceptionalMediterranean cultural andwine and food review, takesplace with tastings, showsa n d t h e i n e v i t a b l ecompetition between chefs

from di f ferent ethnicbackgrounds who contendthe victory palm for therealisation of the bestcouscous, considered to bea dish of peace and symbolof integration of people ofd i f f e r e n t e t h n i cbackgrounds. Tempu r ic a p u n a i s a n o t h e rgastronomic and cultural

event which, in the Autumnperiod, promotes thegurnard fish and bluefishwhich are proposed as thebases for many dishes. Libri,autori e buganvillee, takesplace in via Venza betweenJuly and September and is aseries of meetings used topresent works by famousItalian writers.

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Cous Cous Fest Tempu ri Capuna Libri, autori e buganvillee

Entertainment, sport and free time

ome diving centres offerscuba diving excursions todiscover the splendid coralsea beds of particularbiological interest. Sailingc l u b s o f f e r s a i l i n g ,c a n o e i n g , k ay a k i n g ,windsurfing, water skiing,mono skiing and swimmingcourses. It is possible to goon boat excursions and,

S pescaturismo, (tourist fishingexcursions) with boatswhich welcome tourists onboard who are then giventhe possibility of admiringsuggestive areas and to findout about the various localichthyic species. Manytourist structures haveswimming pools, footballf i e l d s , bow l s a re a s ,

basketball pitches andtennis courts and are alsoequipped for entertainmentshows. The town has abowling green and a publicfive-a-side football field; onecan also practice trekkingand horse riding and go onpleasant excursions todiscover the enchantingsurrounding area.

Small port Tennis court Excursion to the Zingaro

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