Everyone in Spain knows the main wonders of Italy, like him Colosseum or Trevi Fountain in Rome or Brunelleschi’s dome of the Cathedral of Florence, but in the transalpine country there are hidden countless jewels that are far from the big cities, but that are still true wonders. One of them is located in the heart of the nation, about two hours by road from San Marino.
In the Marche region There is a town of less than 2,000 residents, but in its surroundings it has one of the most impressive landscapes in all of Italy. On the outskirts of the Genga town, a town with an enviable architectural heritage, there are the spectacular Frasassi Caves, an imposing network of caves in which you can find all types of geological formations, although you will also come across some other building.
The impressive hermitage in a cave of Genga
In the province of Ancona is located the Gola della Rossa and Frasassi Regional Park, where you can visit the spectacular Temple of Valadier. To get to it from the town of Genga you have to follow a route of about five kilometers that takes you to the Frassasi Caves, a karst labyrinth of about 13 kilometers which make up a true geological wonder almost unmatched anywhere in Italy.
After touring bucolic landscapes, you are taken to the incredible Temple of Valadier, a sanctuary erected in the 19th century inside one of the surrounding caves. The person who commissioned its construction was Pope Leo XII, who came from the della Genga family, a native of the town. This octagonal building is attributed to the architect Giuseppe Valadier, hence its name, although the most recent investigations have discovered that it had nothing to do with its construction.
Inside the temple there is a recreation of a marble statue of the Virgin with the baby Jesus (the original is in the Genga Museum), and although its neoclassical style Its location does not attract attention, since it is embedded in one of the numerous caves in the Frasassi Caves. It is probably one of the most special sanctuaries from all over Italy, and not many are inside a cavern that served as a refuge since the Bronze Age.
But also, just before reaching the temple of Valadier there is another religious wonder: the splendid Santa MarÃa Infra Saxa Hermitage, excavated in the very rock of the Genga mountains. This sanctuary is even older than the one located inside the cave, since there are indications that it could even date from the 11th century.