Piazza Garibaldi

Abruzzo


The large town square is home to Sulmona's extensive Wednesday and Saturday morning market: you'll find fresh fish, veg, fruit and flowers, as well as the ubiquitous porchetta van, selling pork in a roll. Along Corso Ovidio is a striking series of arches, all that remains of a 13th-century aqueduct. In the centre of the piazza, the Renaissance Fontana del Vecchio (Fountain of the Old One) is said by some to depict Solimo, the founder of Sulmona.

To the northeast, the 14th-century Chiesa di San Filippo Neri displays its impressive Gothic portal against a backdrop of often snow-covered mountains. To the southwest, beyond the aqueduct, lies the Rotonda, once the monumental entrance and apse of the Chiesa di San Francesco della Scarpa, but cut off from the functional church when it was salvaged from the 1706 earthquake. It's used for exhibitions and other events.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Abruzzo attractions

1. Museo Diocesano di Arte Sacra

0.04 MILES

On Piazza Garibaldi, housed in the refectory of the former Santa Chiara convent, this small museum has an eclectic collection of religious and…

2. Museo Civico

0.18 MILES

Inside the Palazzo dell'Annunziata is the four-in-one Museo Civico, with sections dedicated to archaeology, religious art, Abruzzese-Molisiano culture and…

3. Cattedrale di San Panfilo

0.5 MILES

Slightly out of the centre, the Gothic-meets-baroque cathedral is like many things in Sulmona: understated and underrated. The fantastically restored…

4. Museo dell'Arte Confettiera

0.68 MILES

This museum is housed in the Fabbrica Confetti Pelino (established 1783), Sulmona's most famous manufacturer of confetti (the confectionery product, as…

5. Abbazia di Santo Spirito Al Morrone

2.79 MILES

It’s hard to miss this massive 13th-century Celestine abbey in Badia, close to the sheer western slopes of the Morrone mountains. Notable for its…

6. Santuario di Ercole Curino

2.83 MILES

Sitting below the Sant’Onofrio hermitage, this sanctuary was originally thought to be the house of Sulmona-born poet Ovid when it was first uncovered in…

7. Eremo di Sant’Onofrio al Morrone

2.9 MILES

This cliff-clinging hermitage with its 15th-century ceiling, 13th-century frescoes, narrow oratory and arched porticoes cowers under a massive rock face…

8. Castello Caldora

3.56 MILES

The defining symbol of Pacentro, this unusual castle with its three oversized towers guards the foothills of Monte Morrone and is visible for miles around…