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Concerviano

Concerviano, a natural balcony overlooking the Salto Valley, owes its secular history to the Imperial Abbey of San Salvatore Maggiore and to its surrounding woods, thanks to which it supplied Rieti with worked wood and ash for centuries.

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Population

288

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Area

21,4 km²

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Altitude

560 m

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Where is it?

Concerviano, the ancient Collis Cervinus, is a small village inhabited by 386 people, located 19 km. away from Rieti. Together with the surrounding hamlets, it overlooks the Valle del Salto from a plateau of great naturalistic value, situated at an altitude ranging from 600 and 1000 m. above sea level.

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Its origins?

Concerviano's history is intertwined with that of the nearby Abbey of San Salvatore, founded by Benedictine monks in 735 on the remains of a pre-existing Roman villa. The monastery quickly expanded its dominion from the Salto and Turano Valley to Rome: in the Carolingian period it assumed such importance and splendour as to be awarded the "imperial" title by Charlemagne. In 891, however, the abbey was destroyed by the Saracens and later rebuilt at the behest of Pope Benedict VIII. From the beginning of the 14h century it began to decline, gradually losing possessions and power until it was united with the Farfa Abbey. Concerviano followed the same fate: in 1282, together with other castles dependent on the Abbey of San Salvatore Maggiore, it passed under the jurisdiction of the Municipality of Rieti. At the beginning of the 19th century, Concerviano was a hamlet of Roccasinibalda but it became an autonomous municipality in 1853,inhabited by 261 people, for a total of 45 families living both in the village and in the countryside. The village hosted several prosperous craft activities carried out in various workshops and mills.

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What to see?

The most important point of interest is certainly the Abbey of San Salvatore Maggiore, a monastery now deserted, but largely recovered and used for cultural events, which looks like a large parallelepiped with an internal courtyard and a tower placed on the left side of the facade. The church of San Salvatore is adjacent to this complex, on its right side. The interior of the church is suggestive and preserves traces of frescoes and a Cosmatesque flooring. The majestic bell tower – built with beautiful square stones – is characterized by large arched windows placed at the top. Inside there are important paintings and the venerated wooden icon of the Madonna della Quercia, adorned with precious ex voto. The small 16th-century church, belonging to the Abbey of San Salvatore Maggiore, situated a few miles from the village of Concerviano is also dedicated to the Madonna della Quercia and was originally used by travellers as a resting place for pilgrims and shepherds.