Another gem of the Amalfi Coast, Furore takes its name from the "the sound of the
raging sea pounding against the valley below". It was, for its particular
physical and geographical location, an impregnable stronghold, even at the times
of the Saracen invasions. The fjord, one of the most picturesque and evocative in Italy,
has always been a natural harbor, famous for its flourishing trade and the development
of the old industrial plants, such as paper mills and mills.
It is also known by the nickname of "the country that does not exist" (the Italian
Neverland), since there is not a real important centre but just small groups of
houses that sprout isolated from the ridges of the cliffs. The "en plein air"
art gallery is very singular: it is composed by over one hundred "walls of author"
and features murals and sculptures that make Furore a "painted village". The municipal
area includes the coastal area of the fjord, on the border between Praiano and Conca
dei Marini, and grows up the valley up to an altitude of 600 meters above sea level,
surrounded by the mountains of Agerola.
The town of Furore was a simple district of the Royal city of Amalfi: a place where
the exiles and the outcasts of society lived, once sent away from city, in an inhospitable,
sparsely populated area with no lands to cultivate. It is mentioned for the first
time in a land registry of 1752. In the Fifties of the XX century, Furore was the
set of a famous film "L'Amore" and, at the same time, of the passionate and tormented
love affair between director Roberto Rossellini and famous Italian actress Anna
Magnani.
But the most attractive thing about this village-non-village is its beautiful setting:
the olive trees, the grapevines on terraces going up the mountainside, the bowers
of lemons with nets stretched between poles, the red roofs and colorful majolicas
on the small bell towers, the brilliantly colored flowers of the wild blackberry
brambles, and the sea: blue, down below, in the corner of your eye, ever present.
Among the major historical, architectural and natural sites of interest, not to
miss:
- the Church of St. James the Apostle (or Holy Jaco), dating back to the XI century,
built on the ruins of an antique rural church. The structure is flanked by a multi-storey
bell tower, topped by a spire covered with majolica mosaic tiles. During the last
renovation, in the spaces below the right aisle, a small series of frescoes of the
school of Giotto were brought to light, reproducing scenes of life of Santa Margherita.
- the Church of St. Michael the Archangel, in Baroque style, although very simple
in style, it features three naves with pointed arches supported by baseless columns
with simple capitals;
- the Church of St. Elias, dating from the XIII century, and built in a suburb area
of the village. Inside it preserves a precious wooden triptych representing the
Madonna with Saints Bartholomew and Elia (1479) by the artist Angelo Antonello from
Capua;
- the Church of Santa Maria;
- the Hermitage of Santa Barbara, a Medieval monastic rural site, of which today
remain only some interesting ruins, including those of the church, hidden between
the bushes near the cave of Santa Barbara, often used in the past (like other caves
in the area) by the monks;
- the Fjord of Furore, a deep rift into the rock at the mouth of a steep valley that
falls into the sea, which retains a small beach with a tiny and picturesque fishing
village. Here among the picturesque "monazzeni" began the stormy relationship between
Roberto Rossellini and "Nannarella" during the filming of "L'Amore".
The houses, today inhabited have been transformed into an interesting Ecomuseo,
which consists of several sections: the paper-mill, the paper drying room, the herbarium
and the museum Costadiva .
The fjord is overridden by a bridge suspended at 30 meters high, along which runs
the main coast road. Here, on the first Sunday in July, takes place a stage of the
of Marmeeting (High Diving Championship).
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