Solofra

The Municipality of Solofra is located in the Irno Valley, on the border with the province of Salerno. It is a city of 12,410 inhabitants, located 400 meters above sea level and 16 km away from Avellino. The territory extends for 22.21 sq km and the adjoining municipalities are: Aiello del Sabato, Calvanico, Contrada, Montoro and Serino. It's crossed by the Solofrana river.
The etymology of the name seems to come from the root salufer, in Latin saluber, which indicates the healthiness and hospitality of the place. The inhabitants are called Solofrani and Saint Michael the Archangel is their patron saint.

PLACES OF INTEREST

Collegiate Church of San Michele Arcangelo (Saint Michael the Archangel) - Built in the 16th century to replace the Parish Church of Sant'Angelo and Santa Maria, it represents one of the main buildings of the city
Orsini Ducal Palace - Built in the late 1500s by the Orsini family and today the Town Hall, it has a stone portal and a square courtyard
Monumental Complex of Santa Chiara (Saint Claire) - Consisting of the convent of the same name and the annexed Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie (Holy Mary of Graces), it is now the seat of the municipal library
Church and Conservatory of Maria Santissima Addolorata (Our Lady of Sorrows) - Dating back to the 19th century, it is located on the right bank of the Solofrana stream
Church of Sant'Andrea Apostolo (Saint Andrew the Apostle) - Located in the homonymous hamlet, in Via Casate, it was rebuilt in Baroque style in 1539 and houses extremely important masterpieces of art by Solimena and Guarini
Church of Sant'Agata Vergine e Martire (Saint Agatha Virgin and Martyr) - Erected in the centre of the main square, it houses fifteen paintings by Guarini inside
Church of San Domenico (Saint Dominic) - Founded in the 17th century, it houses two paintings of great historical-artistic importance also for the main altar of the Vaccaro school
Castelluccia - Located on the western side of Mount Pergola, it offers a natural terrace to the visitor who wants to observe the city from above; the rocky spur on which the Church stands is the oldest point of Solofra
Picentini-Pizzo San Michele trail - Mountain path of great naturalistic and landscape value
Convent of Santa Teresa - Built for the Solofrana Ronca family in 1686, it represents one of the best examples of sacred architecture
Roman Villa - It rises in the hamlet of Sant'Agata Irpina in the locality of Tofola, dated between the 1st century BC and the 1st century AD
Castle ruins - Located at the foot of Mount Pergola-San Marco, it was part of an important defensive complex from the Lombard period
Fountain of the Four Lions - Work in local travertine, built in the 18th century
Scorza locality - It takes its name from the bark of the chestnut trees that was used for tanning. It's the mountain locality that delimits the Solofrana basin to the south
Our Lady of the Snow Park - Green area that takes its name from the church of the same name, along the provincial road between Solofra and Serino

EVENTS

Feast of Saint Anthony - Program full of events on the occasion of the celebrations in honour of Saint Anthony of Padua, scheduled for the month of June
Ferragosto (Midsummer) in Castelluccia - Sacred, historical and folkloric event, simultaneously with the celebrations for Our Lady of Assumption scheduled for the month of August
Carcar' e Sant'Antuono - Celebrations in honour of Saint Anthony the Abbot, with the lighting of the traditional bonfires, scheduled for January
Solofra Carnival - Celebrations on the occasion of the Carnival party, scheduled for the period of Shrove Tuesday
Rioniamoci - Initiative aimed at recalling ancient games among the ten districts of the city of Solofra, scheduled for the summer
Giugno Solofrano - Traditional celebrations in honour of Saint Michael the Archangel, scheduled for June

TYPICAL FOOD AND PRODUCTS

Mallone con pizza di granone - Traditional dish, prepared with broccoli leaves and potatoes and accompanied by a pizza made with corn flour
Pittone - Corn pizza with pork squeaks and broccoli
Maialata - Traditional appetizer, based on breaded pork liver, seasoned with onion
Serino Chestnut PGI - Among the best varieties of chestnuts in Italy, as well as the most exported to international markets
Caciocavallo Silano PDO - Semi-hard cheese, with spun curd, produced with milk from different breeds of cows, including Podolica

FUN FACTS

The city is characterized by the activity of leather tanning which, born on site as in all pastoral realities, remained there due to favourable environmental conditions.
Solofra's participation in the Carbonari revolutions during the 1820s was also important, with the establishment of four Carbonari groups.

HISTORICAL NOTES

The first settlements in the territory of Solofra date back to the Samnite era, a historical period in which the local population gave rise to an outpost located on the communication route between the Sabato Valley and the Irno Valley.
Subsequently, in Roman times, part of the current Solofran territory probably made up a residential nucleus of the ancient city of Abellinum. A further demographic transformation took place with the Lombard invasion, when an early medieval castle protected by the Pieve di Sant'Angelo and Santa Maria began to originate, located in the square where the Collegiate Church of San Michele Arcangelo stands today.
For a period, Solofra was absorbed into the Duchy of Benevento, only to be controlled by the county of Rota. Subsequently, it was a fief of the following families: Filangieri, Zurlo, Della Tolfa and Orsini di Gravina, who transferred the ownership of their principality to the fief of Solofra, maintaining it until the abolition of feudalism, which took place in 1806.