Sutera – a picturesque village at the foot of a giant, a soaring rock dominating the upper Platani valley, in an ancient and genuine dimension of unaltered charm.
Stories of “truvature”, big hidden treasures and vain attempts to find them, are part of the rich local traditions.
From a distance the soaring rock with the old monastery on top reminds one of a “meteor”, those turrets with sheer walls typical of the landascape of Thessalia.
It is all around this mountain, known as San Paolino, that the history of Sutera has developed over the centuries.
It is an ancient history with roots in legend of the mythical founder: Dedalus and archeological evidences of the presence of Sicani 6000 BC. The Greeks called it “Soter” which means “safe” for the strategic position controlling the Platani valley.
The Arab presence is reflected in the picturesque “Rabato” district, which means “closed burgh”. Along the narrow and winding alleys wrapped in silence and surrounded by little houses you breathe an old and rarefied atmosphere, as if the time has stopped. The quarter formed around the mosque, built in 875 A.d., a few traces of which are still inside the main church built in 1545 on a previous one of 1370 built by Giovanni Chiaramonte, with a nave and two side aisles with sequin gold decorations and a spectacular fusion of marble and inlays in the baroque style in the Sacrament Chapel.
Every year, at Christmas, the little streets become the natural scenario for a living crib.
75 broad steps start from Piazza del Carmine and head to Monte san Paolino flanking the rock where stands the sanctuary dedicated to Paolino and Onofrio.Two splendid urns, masterpieces of Sicilian goldsmith art, are kept inside, containing the relics of the two protector saints.
A walk on the big terrace is a must to enjoy the breathtaking view. Amid bare valleys and little woods you can make out the countours of no fewer than 22 towns and villages in Sicily and the imposing Mussomeli castles.
As you continue your visit of the town, you really do feel as if you were going through an open-air museum with the sensation of going back into past, into a dimension which is ancient and genuine, in which traditions mantain their charm unaltered.
To keep good memory of all of that, try the gastronomic specialities like : “Pitirri” (a vegetable soup), “maccu” ( bean purèe), “‘mbriulati” focaccias filled with olives, sausage, onions), bread and egg rissoles, Sutera taralli, little ricotta cassatas, easter chickens, “buccellati” (Christmas sweetmeats filled with walnuts, almond and figs).
