From 16 January the cowbells are rung at San Mauro. Groups of men walk the streets holding them between their legs, and the bells have a sex: the male ones are longer, the female ones wider. It starts with three turns around the church of San Rocco, where the image of Sant'Antonio Abate is kept, and goes on until deep in the night, with stops at the cellars.
The Forte in the name was earned in 1861, when the town drove off Borjes' bands. On the main square stands the Norman tower, cylindrical, twenty-five metres high, with three floors, a system of pulleys and cisterns for rainwater: it was not the keep of a castle, it was an outpost on its own. There are 1,710 residents.
Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta · Torre medievale
Pane di Matera
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Next up: Saint Maurus the Abbot, patron of the town of the Campanaccio festival, Friday 15 January
Nearest airport: Bari Palese, 85 km away
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📅 Every year, on 15 January
San Mauro Forte celebrates Saint Maurus the Abbot on 15 January; the following day sees the Sagra del Campanaccio, an age-old festival combining pagan propitiatory rites tied to transhumance with sacred celebrations honouring the saint.
Durum wheat semolina, thick crust, shaped as a horn or a tall loaf: Pane di Matera has held Protected Geographical Indication status since 2008.
Read more →Straight-line distances from the town centre. Tap a point to open its page.
The closest destinations covered by our editors, with straight-line distance.
Outside San Mauro Forte, but an easy day trip away.
