Orsomarso
Hermit caves and wild nature in the Argentino River Valley
Naturalistic parks
Orsomarso - Regione Calabria
The small medieval village of Orsomarso, crossed by the clear waters of the Argentino River Valley Nature Reserve, takes its name from the mountain range in which it is nestled, in the heart of the Pollino National Park in the province of Cosenza.
Sheltered by high rocks and Mediterranean scrub forests, Orsomarso is one of the wildest and most fascinating corners of the region: rich in karst caves transformed into shelters by Eastern hermit monks, it offers a series of breathtaking excursions.
Nestled in the Argentino River Valley, Orsomarso has prehistoric origins, like the neighbouring towns in this area of Pollino. During the Middle Ages, Orsomarso became an important religious centre for Basilian monks: the heart of the so-called Mercurion, one of the major centres of Eastern mysticism in southern Italy. Among the most important examples from this period are the Church of Santa Maria di Mércuri, a single-nave rock church with a statue of the Madonna Odigitria, and the Cave of the Archangel St. Michael, home of the hermit St. Nilo, with remains of Byzantine frescoes.
The Cave of Our Lady of Lourdes is a monumental karst cave in the centre of the village, overlooked by the village's panoramic viewpoints and where, it is said, a miraculous image of the Madonna appeared. Also worth visiting is the Church of St. John the Baptist, built on the remains of an ancient chapel and rich in 17th and 18th century paintings, which, in addition to a precious polychrome marble altar, houses a parchment from 1575. The symbol of the historic centre is the Clock Tower, built on the ruins of a 10th-century monastery and now a picturesque viewpoint from which to admire the village and the surrounding countryside.
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