L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JUNE 13, 2019 www.italoamericano.org 12 L'Italo-Americano T he Adriatic coast of Italy is one w ith many secrets, among which two sites that have been visited by angels of all stripes: some of them have hovered over the land for centuries. P erhaps today they have finally vacated the territory, because the many traditional - and sometimes weary sagre that used to attract every member of the villages around have more likely become celebrations of the local sports team with balloons and banners of all colors, instead of religious processions featur- ing holy relics from some patron saint or other. The many earthquakes that have rumbled through the glades and mountain passes of the ter- rain may perhaps explain this secularization of the locale to which one must likewise add the effects of the modern means of communication ---twitter, Face- book, and televis ion in general.Nonetheless, history still records certain world-shaking events that continue to draw peo- ple who appreciate the spectacu- lar beauty of the sandy shore towns and cities of the region. From Termoli down to Monte Gargano and with side excur- sions to Andria and Torremag- giore, there are legendary memo- ries that make one think about how men great and small met their angel, either for good or otherwise. Take for example the legend of the Holy Roman Emperor, the mighty and first cosmopolitan citizen of Europe (as some have called him), Frederick II. Losing his father, Frederick I, and moth- er, Constance of Sicily, when only four years old, Frederick grew up under the guardianship of the learned Cencio Savelli, soon to be Pope Honorius III. Due to his prodigious curiosi- ty about the many different peo- ple of Sicily, Frederick spent a great deal of time roaming the streets picking up a keen knowl- edge of the common people from M us lim neighborhoods and lands and soon acquired a work- ing knowledge of their Arabic language. U nder h is formal tutors, he also learned Latin and Greek and of course spoke the medieval Sicilian of his every- day experiences, as well as the M idd le H igh G erman of his father and grandfather. At the age of 14, he proclaimed himself able to take on the responsibili- ties of his royal domains and undertook all necessary cam- paigns to effect this, often cross- ing swords with papal policy. But since he was an astute diplo- mat, he soon amassed such a high and secure reputation that many scholars and poets flocked to his courts. Among these one can point to Pier della Vigna whom Dante cast into the bolge of the Inferno, but w ho nonetheles s helped develop the fashion of compos- ing poems and other writings in the local idiom which are consid- ered the very first steps in the creation of Italian literature. Another person of letters who became a very close intimate of Frederick was Michael Scot or Scotus. Was he an Irishman or a Scot is still debated today since the medieval usage of word Sco- tus could apply to either country. However, early on in his career, Scotus migrated to Spain where he associated closely with Jewish and Arabic scholars who busied thems elves w ith trans lating ancient Greek texts that had been previously translated into the Arabic language. Clearly, this experience turned Michael Scot into a kindred spirit with Freder- ick II, similarly endowed with parallel linguistic skills. All this resulted in the two men being very much drawn into discus- sions of mathematics, astrono- my, astrology, as well as other esoteric matters. Under the sway of such stim- uli, perhaps among the most curious experiments Frederick engaged in was building the Cas- tel del Monte near the city of Andria in 1240. Meticulously constructed with eight sides, it fully extolled the mysterious fas- cination of Templar alchemists for the mystical power of the number eight. The castle is not considered to have been used as a fortress for the protection of the land, but instead seems to have been a spa palace for the restoration of health, since its center hall one time boasted a huge white marble-lined pool. Whether rituals for the conjuring THOMAS VESCE Castel del Monte, in Apulia, built by Frederick II Two sites along the Adriatic shore visited by angels Continued to page 14 Torremaggiore, a location tied with the life and fate of Frederick II LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE

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