Taurano

The Municipality of Taurano is located within the area of the Vallo di Lauro. It's a town with 1,505 inhabitants, located 300 metres above sea level, at 24 km from Avellino. The territory extends for 9.77 sq km and the adjoining municipalities are: Lauro, Monteforte Irpino, Moschiano, Pago del Vallo di Lauro and Visciano.
The etymology of the name seems to be found in the noble Taurius or in the surname Taurus. The inhabitants are called Tauranesi and Saint Mary of the Assumption into Heaven is their patron saint.

PLACES OF INTEREST

Abbey of San Michele Arcangelo (Saint Michael the Archangel) - The current layout dates back to the second half of the 16th century and consists of the Church, with a single nave, the abbot’s house and some service rooms
Convent of San Giovanni del Palco (Saint John) - Born on the ruins of a late Republican Roman villa, it was begun in 1383 at the behest of Niccolò Orsini, Count of Nola: it is an ideal place for prayer and meditation and preserves a monumental wooden altar, executed by Giuseppe da Soleto around the year 1650
Church of the Madonna del Rosario (Our Lady of the Rosary) - Built at the end of the 16th century, it preserves the paintings of the lateral chapels of considerable interest
Roman Villa of San Giovanni in Palco - Imposing spa complex dating back to the first century BC, located on the border with Lauro
Church of the Madonna dell’Assunta (Our Lady of the Assumption) - Located in Piazza Fontana, it has a typically Baroque layout even if, in reality, it is much older
Church of the Madonna dell’Arco (Our Lady of the Arch) - Small church of uncertain origins, it is located on the western spur of Pietra Maula, on the mountain, close to the town in Arcucciello
Other - Piazza Freconia, Grotta del Tonfo, Ruins of Santa Croce

EVENTS

International Folklore Meetings - Festival, now in its 25th edition, which takes place in the first ten days of August and welcomes folk groups from all over the world
Tauranese Carnival - Traditional event with masks, allegorical floats, quadrille and ballintrezzo (or love snare), typical dances of the territory
Good Friday - Religious initiative that involves, at dawn on Good Friday, the participation of young and old, in white gowns crowned with thorns, the “biancovestiti” (men dressed in white), as a sign of remission to clemency, and the living representation of the Passion of Christ
Echoes of summer - It takes place in August and is a review, founded in 1996, which allows the encounter between folkloric experiences that are apparently different but, in reality, are very similar to each other
Portici d’Autore - Summer event that takes place in August and consists of a theatrical path in which myths and legends, history and folklore reign supreme
Gnocchi Festival - It takes place in the week of August and is a food and wine event dedicated to the fresh handmade pasta

TYPICAL FOOD AND PRODUCTS

Zuppe di Suffritto soup - Antique dish made with homemade bread and sausages and seasoned with legumes, peas, broad beans and red beans
Pasta and beans - Typical first course with the addition, in the Tauranese version, of pork rinds and beaten fried lard
Spaghetti and hazelnuts - Typical dish of the Tauranese tradition
‘A ’mbarinata - Polenta prepared with corn flour and seasoned with tomato sauce and beans
Caciocavallo Silano PDO - Semi-hard cheese, with spun curd, produced with milk from different breeds of cows, including Podolica

FUN FACTS

In ancient times, in Taurano, craft activities such as carving, woodworking, as well as working of iron and black tuff were widespread: activities, today, almost completely disappeared, but still evident in the various tuff or stone portals of the main places of interest, as well as in the refined religious or domestic furnishings and in the numerous wooden statues present in the Vallo di Lauro.

HISTORICAL NOTES

The origins of Taurano, although uncertain, are very ancient and linked to the phenomenon of transhumance: according to the most accredited hypothesis, in fact, groups of shepherds-warriors from the Apennines are said to have settled in the Piana di Fraconia, constituting a symbiosis with some settlement nuclei inhabited by Etruscans (Capua, Nuceria and Nola) and Greeks (Paestum and Neapolis).
Once a Samnite oppidum, destroyed by Silla during the Social War, the current town of Taurano began to develop in medieval times, when the Ciesco, Cappello and Trivio districts joined to form a farmhouse dependent on the fief of Lauro, following its historical events.
Over the centuries, Taurano has been administered by several families, including the Sanseverino, Del Balzo, Orsini, Pignatelli and Lancellotti families. Following the abolition of feudalism in 1806 and the consequent Unification of Italy in 1861, the Tauranese community also had to deal with a massive process of emigration, especially to the Americas, between 1870 and 1923.