L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 28 L'Italo-Americano O c t o b e r : i t ' s spooky season! Halloween, the day of spooks a n d t r i c k - o r - treat, but also the first of three days, if we include All S a i n t s a n d A l l S o u l s , d e d i c a t e d t o t h e G r e a t Beyond. The whole month of October, with its liminality, s o f t l i g h t , a n d d a r k e n e d c o l o r s , i s t h e p e r f e c t preamble to all that. And the perfect month to talk about t h e p a r a n o r m a l a n d witches. W h i l e I t a l y ' s w i t c h t r i a l s m a y h a v e n e v e r r e a c h e d , a t l e a s t w h e n i t c o m e s t o p o p u l a r knowledge, the magnitude o f S a l e m ' s , w e h a d s o m e u n f o r t u n a t e , g r u e s o m e cases, too, such as those of Triora - known, in fact, as "the Italian Salem" - and Rifreddo, and others where legend and mystery, rather than history, actually take the lead, like in the case of Benevento. Not many are familiar with these witches, but their presence is still there, in the alleys of their villages and the words of legends and history books. S o g r a b t h a t p u m p k i n s p i c e c o f f e e a n d g e t c o m f o r t a b l e , b e c a u s e i t ' s time to take a journey in the w o r l d o f I t a l y ' s w i t c h i n g villages. Triora is the first stop of o u r j o u r n e y b e c a u s e i t r e m a i n s t h e m o s t (in)famous of all witches' v i l l a g e s i n t h e c o u n t r y . Triora is a small commune i n t h e A r g e n t i n a V a l l e y (Imperia) on the Maritime Alps. With a population of 3 5 5 , i t i s a s m a l l h a m l e t , k n o w n m o s t l y f o r i t s t r a d i t i o n a l , h e a r t y b r e a d made with buckwheat flour and its witch trials, which took place in the mid-16th c e n t u r y . J u s t l i k e S a l e m , Triora made of the historical tragedy that hit its people a marker of its identity and, i n d e e d , a s o u r c e o f p o p u l a r i t y : i t s h o m e s , streets, and alleys have been kept largely the way they w e r e i n t h e M i d d l e A g e s , w i t h e x t r a " w i t c h y " d e c o r a t i o n s , l i k e b r o o m s t i c k s , b l a c k c a t s ' metal cutouts, murals and frightening stone sculptures, just like in Salem. And just l i k e i t s N e w E n g l a n d counterpart, Triora's tourist industry is largely based on the events that took place all those centuries ago: between 1587 and 1589, 30 women (and one young man) were accused of witchcraft and j a i l e d . T h e a c c u s a t i o n s a g a i n s t t h e m w e r e a l s o s i m i l a r t o t h o s e b r o u g h t against the women of Salem: they were accused of having caused with magic the tragic f a m i n e t h a t h a d b e e n p l a g u i n g t h e v i l l a g e , a n d also to have kidnapped - and sacrificed - some children. Historical sources tell us clearly that crops' failure h a d n o t h i n g t o d o w i t h magic, and was likely the r e s u l t o f l a n d l o r d s ' incompetence, yet, it was m u c h s i m p l e r t o f i n d a physical, tangible scapegoat in these women, who were notably isolated from the r e s t o f t h e c o m m u n i t y because of their age, their personality or their activities - some of them were healers. A handful of miles north o f T r i o r a , i n t h e C u n e o province of Piedmont, is the v i l l a g e o f R i f r e d d o , o u r s e c o n d s t o p i n t h i s fascinating trip into mystery and history. Rifreddo, whose name comes from Latin and means "cold river," lies at the feet of Mount Bracco. Today, this small, quiet town of 1000, cradled fatherly in the imposing, yet protective embrace of Mount Monviso, is still known by historians a n d p a r a n o r m a l investigators because of the e v e n t s o f 1 4 9 5 , w h e n a bloody witch trial - whose victims, it seems, still roam Rifreddo's streets at night - t o o k p l a c e . A f t e r t h e m y s t e r i o u s d e a t h o f a n attendant, the abbess at the l o c a l f e m a l e C i s t e r c i a n convent felt the Inquisition was needed: the man, she thought, died because of the Devil. Just like in Salem and Triora, many women were a c c u s e d , f o l l o w i n g t h a t "domino effect" typical of the Inquisition period. Of course, they were charged w i t h w i t c h c r a f t a n d , a c c o r d i n g t o t h e t r i a l r e c o r d s , w h i c h a r e s t i l l e x t a n t , t h e y h a d e v e n c o n f e s s e d t o i t , b u t o n l y after unspeakable pain and months of torture. In the South, Benevento is the most iconic of all witch towns. Contrarily to what happens usually, and very differently from what took place in Triora and Rifreddo, the witches of Benevento w e r e n ' t p e r s e c u t e d n o r killed, if anything, they were respected and accepted in the life of Beneventans. To b e f a i r , t h e w i t c h e s o f Benevento are not the same as the ones of Triora, Salem, and Rifreddo: they are more the stuff of legends and old folklore than history. Yet, there is a crumble of truth in e v e r y t a l e a n d w e c a n ' t e n t i r e l y d i s c o u n t B e n e v e n t o ' s a s p u r e l y fantastic: perhaps, there is a sparkle of truth in there, too. The connection between the c i t y , l o c a t e d i n t h e Campania region of Italy, a n d t h e p a r a n o r m a l i s ancient, as it dates back to t h e 6 t h c e n t u r y B C w h e n G r e e k c o l o n s b r o u g h t t o these lands the orgiastic cult of Cybele. Ovid, the Roman poet, believed the area was h o m e t o s t r i g e s , e v i l c r e a t u r e s w h o f e d o n children's blood and often associated with witchcraft. W h e n t h e L o m b a r d conquered the South, in the 6th century AD, Benevento became their capital, and their very own tribal rituals became part of local lore. If we know all this, and all that I'm about to write, is thanks to Pietro Piperno, 1 7 t h - c e n t u r y B e n e v e n t a n historian and author of De N u c e M a g a ( " a b o u t t h e m a g i c a l w a l n u t t r e e " ) , a treatise about the witches a n d m a g i c o f t h e a r e a . A c c o r d i n g t o h i m , m a n y f a m o u s w i t c h e s l i v e d i n B e n e v e n t o d u r i n g t h e R e n a i s s a n c e , i n c l u d i n g A l c i n a , V i o l a n t e d a Pontecorvo, Menadra, and t h e A r c i s t r e g a ( o r " a r c h w i t c h , " j u s t l i k e a n " a r c h b i s h o p " ) o f S a n n i o , who was processed by the I n q u i s i t i o n i n 1 5 4 0 . Legends, and Piperno, say t h a t t h e w i t c h e s o f Benevento used to gather for their sabba around an old wal nut tr ee, wher e Satan would wait for them every Saturday night. Of course, t h e y w o u l d a l l g e t t h e r e riding their broomsticks and covered with a special salve that allowed them to fly and to become invisible, just like all witches in the world do. CHIARA D'ALESSIO A monument in Triora dedicated to the "witches," the victims of the persecution in the 16th century (Photo: Christa Eder/Dreamstime) LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE Italy, a land of witches

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