Sacrario della Folgore

The Sacrario della Folgore is a memorial chapel above Castro Marina's harbour. Designed by Paolo Caccia Dominioni, it commemorates the Italian paratroopers who died at El Alamein in 1942.

Why it matters

The memorial connects a Salento coastal setting with the memory of the North African campaign. Its creation was closely associated with Giovanni, known as Nino, Starace, a decorated veteran who donated the land.

What to notice

A bronze paratrooper and an anti-tank gun form the principal sculptural group. Their orientation symbolically links the memorial with El Alamein. A majolica image of Saint Michael the Archangel adds a religious element to the commemoration.

Context and history

Starace and Caccia Dominioni developed the project after the war. The chapel was realised in 1968 and inaugurated in 1970. Its architecture recalls Caccia Dominioni's work on the Italian memorial in Egypt, creating a connection between the two places of remembrance.