Pacentro
Pacentro is a comune of 1,279 inhabitants of the province of L'Aquila in Abruzzo, Italy. It is a well-preserved historic medieval village located in central Italy, several kilometers from the City of Sulmona about 170 kilometres (110 mi) east of Rome. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful villages of Italy").[3]
Geography[edit]
Pacentro lies in the Apennine Mountain Range on a plateau consisting of small hills 650 metres (2,133 ft) above sea level. The castle sits on one hill (Colle Castello) at one end of town and the other hill (Colle San Marco) is where the old Church of S. Marco used to sit. The town is just below Mount Morrone and right above the Peligna Valley (Conca Peligna) and the City of Sulmona. Pacentro is part of the Majella National Park (Parco Nazionale della Majella) and is renowned for its springs and fresh mountain water that comes from the snow of the Majella.
Festas, holy days, and special events[edit]
The feast of San Marco Evangelista, the original town patron saint, is on April 25.
The feast of Corpus Christi (or Corpus Domini) falls a month or so after Easter and features a magnificent procession with several altars erected throughout the village
In July is the Festa del Ritorno, an event organized by the "Cooperativa Agricola Rivera Pacentro" in honor of the people who emigrated in the past century from this town.
In August is the Rievocazione Storica, a medieval festival celebrating the times of the Caldora lords featuring medieval costumes and parades at the castle.
The Festa of the Madonna of Loreto is the first Sunday in September and is very popular with a procession and an exciting barefoot race (Corsa degli Zingari) from the Mountains to the Church.
In October is the feast of the Madonna del SS. Rosario (Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary) and in November is the Feast of St. Charles Borromeo with a procession and the inflating of a giant hot air balloon in the Piazza Jaringhi.
The town has several ancient religious organizations known as Confraternities. There are four still in existence: San Carlo, SS. Rosario, Madonna di Loreto and Santa Croce. The Confraternities are each responsible, along with the Pastor, for the coordination of the various festas.
The population peaked in 1911 with over 4000 inhabitants. Today with the population just under 1100, most of the population emigrated after World War II. Many went to the United States, Latin America and Australia. There are many clubs and cultural associations for Pacentrani and their descendants around the world.
Among those descendants are the following: