THE IMPERIAL ABBEY OF FARFA
Deep in the heart of Sabine countryside, at only forty kilometres from Rome, the splendid see of the Benedictine Community of Farfa is an oasis of peace and spirituality. The Abbey of Farfa, declared a National Monument in 1928, is situated on the bottom slop of Mount Acuziano, surrounded by tick green forests and olive groves. It seems as if the magnificent Sabine countryside is there to act as a natural cornice to this important historical, artistic and cultural jewel that has witnessed the towing and frowning of over fifteen centuries of history. The monastery and the little village that huddles around its walls have a charm of their own.
The Abbey received the appellative "Imperial" directly from the hands of Charlemagne, the first Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. He granted it, with two Diplomas of Immunity the title of "Fedelissima" - the most faithful. It became one of the most powerful and influential religious centres in Europe. In the centuries immediately after the Carolingian era the Abbey grew in importance, both spiritually and materially. Its holdings extended through central Italy and beyond and it often found itself in open contrast with the Holy See itself.
Preserved in the Abbey today are large tracts of the original medieval buildings, traces of the work of its famous scriptorium, works of art and pictorial cycles of its past, the crypt with a very well preserved Roman sarcophagus that was found in the grounds. The small museum has an audio visual layout created by a famous Italian set designer Emanuele Luzzati. The Abbey offers today's visitor the possibility of experiencing life inside a monastery. Its shop has for sale herbalist products from Benedictine monasteries throughout the world.
A guide tour will conduct the visitor to the most suggestive corners of the Abbey; the tour will include the Basilica of Santa Maria, the antique Torre Campanaria, and the Library where the precious collection of manuscripts and incunables are on show, the cloister and the archaeological museum where the most significant periods of its existences are reconstructed.
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Info: www.sabinaon.it
