Conza della Campania

The Municipality of Conza della Campania is located in the Upper Irpinia area. It's a town with 1,289 inhabitants, located 440 metres above sea level, at 68 km from Avellino. The territory extends for 51.64 sq km and the adjoining municipalities are: Andretta, Cairano, Caposele, Castelnuovo di Conza, Morra De Sanctis, Pescopagano, Sant'Andrea di Conza and Teora. It's crossed by the Ofanto river and overlooks the Conza dam.
The etymology of the name comes from Compsa, an ancient and powerful city. The inhabitants are called Conzani and Saint Herbert is their patron saint.

PLACES OF INTEREST

Compsa Archaeological Park - Remains of the Roman city re-emerged below the ruins of the town of Conza, almost completely destroyed by the 1980 earthquake; it consists of a complex building stratification that represents the palimpsest of over 2,000 years of history with the Roman Forum, the Amphitheatre, the Baths, the Cathedral and the Column-Emblem
WWF Oasis Lake Conza - Immense green area, characterized by a large blue lake nestled between rolling hills, a natural meadow dotted with wild flowers, paths to cross on foot or by bike, two wildlife areas, picnic area, parking and an equipped visitor centre
Co-Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta (Saint Mary of the Assumption) - Located in the centre of the new Conza della Campania settlement, it was built to replace the ancient cathedral of Conza, which was destroyed after the 1980 earthquake

EVENTS

The Siege of Compsa - Historical re-enactment of the events that involved the Roman city of Compsa during the Second Punic War in 216 BC: it takes place in August, in the Archaeological Park, and involves the participation of the inhabitants of the town, dressed in Roman clothes and armour
Feast of the Maggiaiole - It takes place on the last Saturday of May and consists of a folkloric and religious rite, in the form of a procession, which has been repeated for time immemorial and which enhances the friendship between the neighbouring Irpinian villages of Sant’Andrea di Conza and Conza della Campania
Feast of Saint Herbert - Celebrations in honour of the patron saint which take place on the 20th of August
Migliarello, Salted codfish and Pork Festival - Food and wine event that takes place on the 25th of July and promotes typical local products
Summer in Conza - Series of summer cultural, recreational, musical, food and wine events, which take place from July to August

TYPICAL FOOD AND PRODUCTS

Caciocavallo irpino di grotta PAT - Spun curd cheese, produced with milk from small and medium-sized farms, mainly from brown cattle, traditionally aged in caves
Caciocavallo Silano PDO - Excellent semi-hard cheese, with spun curd, produced with milk from different breeds of cows, including Podolica, a typical native breed of the territory

FUN FACTS

The symbol of the municipality is the Phoenix, which dies and is reborn countless times from its ashes, just as Conza did following the numerous earthquakes that hit it.
The Conza Dam, completed in 1992, can contain up to fifty-four million cubic meters of water.

HISTORICAL NOTES

In the Roman and early Middle Ages, Conza della Campania (Compsa) was an important city and in many ways also powerful, at least until the modern age, when, due to frequent earthquakes, it suffered severe damage and a decimation of the population. Among the most disastrous seismic events we remember that of the 25th of October 990, after which the ancient Compsa was rebuilt on a hill, with the houses around the castle. Even the most recent earthquake, however, that of the 23rd of November 1980 devastated Conza della Campania, causing the destruction of the old village, currently uninhabited, and leading to the reconstruction of the current town downstream.
It should be noted that Conza della Campania was a bishopric from the 6th century and a metropolitan archbishop's seat from the 11th century.