SHARRYLAND
Where is
What it is and where it is
Contursi Terme is a town situated on a hilltop with a beautiful view of the Sele Valley. Its alleys, streets and squares repurpose colorful houses with traditional stone portals, a distinctive feature of the area's villages. There is no shortage of elegant palaces of the most influential families in the history of Contursi Terme, as well as several religious buildings, testifying to the spirituality of the village. Prominent among them is the Church of the Holy Child Jesus, which houses a 15th-century wooden statue of the Infant Jesus linked to many miraculous events and venerated as the village's patron saint.
Why it is special
In Contursi Terme, however, architecture and spirituality are not the only highlights. In fact, as its name suggests, nature, and in particular water, has a very strong bearing on the life of the village. The many springs that are concentrated in this area, in fact, have been renowned since the dawn of time as among the most prodigious and have given rise to contemporary spa complexes where one can indulge in some relaxation or simply enjoy a nice vacation. But when looking at the village from afar, there are quite other waters that catch the traveler's eye: these are the two rivers of Contursi Terme.
Not to be missed
Contursi Terme is washed by no less than two rivers, the Tanagro and the Sele. The most beautiful view is from above, when you can see the Tanagro, which, after flowing through its valley and the Vallo di Diano, and after taking in the waters of many streams along its path, flows into the Sele, letting itself be carried down to the sea. For those who want to experience the river a little more closely, there is a walk from the village to the banks of the Sele, immersed in lush vegetation, in the stretch where fifteen thermal springs with well-known healing properties, including sulfur, salsobromoiodic and bicarbonate-alkaline springs, gush forth.
A bit of history
The Contursi area has been inhabited since the dawn of time, but it was not until the fall of the Roman Empire that a real urban center arose. In fact, history reveals that the people who lived on the hill where Saginara once stood took refuge inland where they erected their fortified town and even a castle to avoid frequent attacks and destruction by barbarians and Saracens. Since the 14th century the village was destroyed and rebuilt many times by different conquerors who wanted to have control of this strategic point overlooking two rivers.
Trivia
The Sele is the natural habitat of a wide variety of aquatic and terrestrial animals, thanks to the unique healthy and clean conditions of its waters. The brown trout of the Mediterranean strain is one of the current environmental indicators of healthiness; in addition, ichthyological censuses have traced the persistence of a residual population of native Mediterranean trout, which was previously thought to have disappeared. To ensure the survival and replenishment of the latter through artificial reproduction, "Selattivo," a fish hatchery, was created and can be visited.
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