Escursione al Santuario di Santa Augusta

From the staircase of Santa Augusta, located near the Duomo of Serravalle, the path begins that winds through the woods. The spiny trees of the Osagi Maclura Auranhaca are frequent, a plant with inedible fruits, very rare in our area. Halfway up, one arrives at the place where, according to legend, Santa Augusta, surprised by her father, transformed the bread she was carrying to the poor into flowers. Along the way, one encounters seven oratories erected in the 17th century to fulfill a vow made to the Saint who saved the city from the plague of 1630. At the end of the ascent, one passes under the defensive tower belonging to the third city wall built to protect Serravalle. From here, a series of steep steps lead to the courtyard of the Sanctuary. The church, built in the 15th century, houses the relics of Santa Augusta, daughter of the Gothic king Matrucco, who, for her Christian faith, was martyred by the wheel, the tongs, and fire, and finally beheaded by her father. Inside the Sanctuary, we find the chapel of the Battuti frescoed in the 15th century and the altar with the relics of the Saint discovered in 1450. The Sanctuary has always been a destination for popular devotion, and the Saint is celebrated on August 21 with a secular fair and the inevitable fireworks.