Monuments - Castello Normanno
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- Category: bovas
- Last Updated on Friday, 23 February 2024 14:53
- Published on Thursday, 23 May 2013 14:50
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The Norman Castle stands atop a rocky spur and the few remaining ruins are insufficient to reconstruct the layout of the whole. The rooms that are still legible are located at different heights, but it is difficult to understand their function, also due to the fact that the original orography of the land has been altered. The castle was supported by the city walls, of which a circular tower (Torre Normanna) still exists today. There are various hypotheses on the dating of the complex fortification, it is likely that the existing structures date back to the Angevin period. In the 15th-16th-17th centuries, following Turkish incursions, the castle was an excellent and safe refuge for the population. Several legends are linked to the castle. On the top, carved into a boulder, the footprint of a woman's foot is still visible. The footprint is said to have belonged to Countess Matilda of Canossa, who received the castle from Pope Gregory VII. If the footprint therefore corresponded to a girl's foot, she would have discovered that she was descended from the Countess of Canossa. Another legend speaks of the footprint of the 'Queen'. A Greek queen apparently had the castle built and if the footprint matched that of a young girl's foot, the lucky girl would find the queen's treasure.
