The ghost town of Buonanotte Vecchio

A place with a very special charm

On the ridge of Monte Vecchio, just over 60 kilometres from our holiday homes with sea views in Abruzzo, there is a charming ghost town, completely abandoned by its inhabitants, where time has stood still. We are talking about Buonanotte Vecchio, a scenic village in the municipality of Montebello sul Sangro.

Its history begins in the 12th century, when it was known as Malanotte. There are two legends about the origin of the name. The first tells of a majestic fortress inhabited by the noble Oderigi family. One day the fortress was attacked by the troops of a neighbouring lord who forced the defenders to surrender. Following the defeat, the inhabitants had to give their wives for one night to the victors, who raped them cruelly. Thus the castle where the outrage was committed became Castel di Malanoctem, in memory of the past ‘evil night’. As a further insult, the winners later changed the name to Goodnight. The second one tells of a passing royal who, forced to stay one night in the castle during a storm, decided to call it Malanotte Castle. Later the same royal returned there on a beautiful sunny day and, noticing the beauty of the place, decided to change the name to Buonanotte Castle.

The hamlet was completely abandoned in the spring of 1969 due to a large number of landslides, classified over time as earth and mudflows, which severely damaged it. The inhabitants moved a few kilometres downstream to the new town of Montebello sul Sangro. The municipality is now divided into two nuclei: the old abandoned village, Buonanotte Vecchio, and the new village, Montebello. Although part of the old village is uninhabitable, it remains a fascinating place that offers thrills and enchanting views at every turn. In Buonanotte Vecchio it is nice to walk without a precise destination and be surprised step by step. Wandering around the houses, one is struck by the beautiful stone door jambs and the old elegance of the houses, some of which are now overgrown.

In recent years, the village has been revitalised thanks to the interdisciplinary project Buonanotte Contemporanea, in which the joint action between architect and artist has created a new language that enhances the old village without erasing its identity. The remains and abandoned spaces of the village dialogue with the site-specific works of artists Artan Shalsi, Vincenzo Marsiglia and Jasmine Pignatelli. Welcoming the visitor is the environmental installation BN_L_AIFE_20_295 by Artan Shalsi, which catapults the visitor into an evocative and evocative space-time dimension. This is followed by Kaleidoscope by Vincenzo Marsiglia, which invites the spectator to safely immerse himself in the nature of the place, to admire the panorama. Finally, Jasmine Pignatelli’s work A Broken Line closes the itinerary. It supports the walls of two crumbling buildings, creating yet another unstable space.

The village, located at an altitude of around 800 metres, is also an excellent starting point for excursions to the Sagro Aventino and its natural and archaeological areas (including the Roman municipality of Iuvanum and the megalithic walls of Pallanum).

Photo © Abruzzo Turismo

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