Soverato Vecchiu

Soverato Vecchiu is the roofless remains of the fortified village from which modern Soverato developed. Its hilltop site preserves fragments of walls, churches, dwellings and a hermit's retreat, with views over the Gulf of Squillace.

Why it matters

The name Suberatum is recorded in a document of 1096, which mentions a mill in its territory. The hill settlement was enclosed by walls and two towers; remains identified by the municipality include the Matrice church, Santa Caterina d'Alessandria, a baronial court, dwellings, workshops and a hermit laura.

What to notice

Among the surviving features are the roofless church of Santa Caterina, remains of the Matrice and a large cistern. An anachoretic cave at the foot of the hill is associated with solitary religious life. Local tradition connects the Grotta dei Regnanti with a chivalric tale; the story belongs to the site's folklore. The ridge overlooks the Gulf of Squillace.

Context and history

The village was damaged by earthquakes in the seventeenth century and abandoned after the earthquake of 1783. Its inhabitants established settlements on nearby hills and increasingly at the coast, leaving the older borgo to become a record of Soverato's earlier history. Archaeological work in the early twenty-first century brought parts of the site to light.