Those who visit it for the first time cannot help but be amazed at its beauty. We are talking about the Antico Borgo Cavallaro, located in Gaggi.
This place is characterized by an urban fabric made up of narrow streets, small alleys and low houses that are linked to each other in a spectacular sequence, which is very reminiscent of a typical Arab souk where it medieval style it is still evident.
Il Village of Gaggi it is really tiny but particularly fascinating and this can be seen from the buildings still present such as the Mother Church of Santa Maria SS. Announced which turns out to be, since ancient times, the most important religious building of this village.
The legend of the Cavallaro village
In the territory of Gaggi is what was once the Cavallaro village which, like others ghost city, is a favorite destination for the curious, tourists and lovers of mysteries and legends.
It is said that in ancient times, the little one existed on the banks of the Alcantara village of Kaliggi once part of Taormina until a rich marquis bought it fascinated by its beauty made up of the narrow streets and alleys that characterized this village located in the upper part of Gaggi.
Inside the tiny inhabited area stood the Mother Church dedicated to Maria SS. Annunziata which was also the most significant religious center of the town.
Legend has it that while thebuilding the small church, the wayfarers heading on pilgrimage to the Madonna della Catena, loved to take a break in that very place and one day, an old lady who had seen better days, asked the Marquis who was supervising the work for money to buy food. The latter, having listened to the requests of the old woman, refused to help her, threatening those present to do the same. It was then that the shabby old lady, irritated by the way she had been treated, cast a curse precisely against the noble warning that whoever had the task of finishing the construction of the bell tower would die by falling from it.
The marquis, to avoid that threat, chose to abandon the village by halting the work on the bell tower which remained unfinished but also the inhabitants of Cavallaro themselves, terrified by the curse, decided to abandon their homes which remained totally uninhabited for half a century.
Despite everything, even if he moved to Palermo, the curse struck the Marquis who fell from the bell tower of the cathedral during the celebrations for the patron saint and it is said that his ghost roams restlessly inside Cavallaro where, on full moon nights, it is still possible to see his spirit falling from the tower.
What to see in the ancient village of Gaggi
The main attraction is given by the presence of the Church despite the fact that it remained closed for some time and that neglect caused some damage inside. Following renovation works carried out in 1999, the religious building was reopened to the faithful even if limited to events such as the most important celebrations such as Holy Week, Baptisms, Communions and weddings.
The church is characterized by a facade enclosed by beautiful lasene which contrast with the lava stone and pink marble with which it is built. To its side stands the bell tower which highlights, in its upper part, trifions and tympanums on all four sides and a small dome that seals it.
Also visit Old Jail, a severe construction probably dating back to the fifteenth century where there is a staircase built entirely with local lava stone from Etna that leads to the upper floor which has now disappeared due to collapses. The lava stone windows and the interior of the building are also beautiful due to the particular red bricks inserted between the stones in a sort of opus incertum.
Also worth seeing are the sixteenth century Palace of the Marquis even if the structure appears to be somewhat severe except for the cornices of the French windows accompanied by some lava stone ornamentation.
For all those who find themselves staying in one of the stupendous beaches of Eastern Sicily and wish to breathe the special atmosphere of a ghost town, they can easily reach the Village of Gaggi and enter theancient Cavallaro and, for the more adventurous, wait for the night when there is a full moon and hope to meet the ghost of the accursed Marquis.
Joseph Green, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
