The Chestnut of the Hundred Horses in Sant'Alfio

In Sicily, in the province of Catania and precisely in the municipality of Sant'Alfio, there is a very interesting place from a naturalistic and historical point of view, above all because it has the view on the horizon Etna volcano and then because in this town there is one of the largest and longest-lived trees in Europe, it is the Hundred Horse Chestnut, a tree which with its majesty of 57,9 meters in circumference and its luxuriant fronds has even entered into legend. The town of Sant'Alfio and the Castagno dei Cento Cavalli are therefore places to visit and to discover.

The legend that mentions the Chestnut of the Hundred Horses

It is said that once upon a time the Tree of the Hundred Horses managed to shelter the procession of the Queen Joanna of Aragon , alias Giovanna I d'Angiò, therefore to a mass consisting of one hundred horsemen each with his own horse, for the entire duration of the storm.

Almost unbelievable at the thought but curiosity is certainly revived and this explains why the town of Sant'Alfio and the Chestnut of the Hundred Horses are one of the many attractions of this Etna area of ​​Sicily, either for the naturalistic aspect, or for the fairytale-legendary aspect that is hidden behind this tree.

The history of the Hundred Horse Chestnut

The Chestnut of the Hundred Horses has existed for a long time, it is said that it has at least between /strong>3600 and 4000 years, but it only began to be talked about in the 1600s.
In 1787, during the Grand Tour of aristocrats and artists around Europe, the painter and engraver Jean Houel who was in these parts made a beautiful and famous portrait of him which is now kept in the Louvre Museum.

So much is the power of imagination and creativity that can be rediscovered in this place, in addition to the indispensable desire to relax when you are in the open air, especially in green and tree-lined areas. It becomes a moment of poetry and imagination with the mind, perhaps thinking back to the legend and the mentioned possibility that as many as 100 people and 100 horses can find space under this tree!

The story of Sant'Alfio

The Chestnut of the Hundred Horses is inexorably linked to the attractiveness of this town, however the same also offers other interesting tourist ideas that have to do with the naturalistic, historical, folkloristic and food and wine aspects (and in the latter case, among the various, chestnuts, in fact).

The name of the town is v linked to religious tradition (another reason for the charm of this area) in fact it is said that Alfio, together with his two brothers Filadelfio and Cirino, originally from Vaste, in the province of Lecce, in Puglia, in 253 AD were brought to Sicily to be martyred, in fact they had to therefore go to Lentini but it was near the territory of Sant'Alfio that the famous 'miracle of the beams' occurred according to which the arrival of a sudden wind during their passage swept away the beams they carried on their shoulders, freeing them happily. It is no coincidence that the religious aspect is very important here in Sant'Alfio and the deeply felt Feast of the 3 Patron Saints is celebrated on the first Sunday of May.

What to visit in the surrounding area

In the city, the same presents others cult sees of particular beauty and therefore to be visited like the various churches scattered within it, for example the Mother Church, which was built between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, from an architectural point of view it offers a splendid facade made entirely of lava stone, the latter is another added value to be discovered in these places, given that we are in the Etna area.

But there are also important churches such as the Chiesetta del Calvario, the Church of Nucifori and the Church of Magazzeni, built in more recent times, i.e. in 1958, as thanksgiving for the lack of danger for the territory of Sant'Alfio due to an eruption volcanic Etna.
In different cities too religious holidays typical, for example that of February 3 at the Church of Calvario, the day of the feast of San Biagio bishop and martyr, an event that provides for the distribution during the masses of the 'cuddureddi sammrasi', or blessed sandwiches, but deeply felt by the local population it is also, during the Easter period, the via Crucis from the Mother Church to that of Calvary.

Dulcis in fundo but not least in importance are also the many food and wine specialties all to try and easily traceable thanks to the many trattorias and restaurants scattered in the area around Sant'Alfio and the Castagno dei Cento Cavalli.