Descrizione
Lamoli is a haven of peace and devotion. The village, home to fewer than a hundred souls, is dominated by the Benedictine Abbey of St Michael the Archangel, a bastion of spirituality rising above the waters of the Meta stream. Founded in 543, shortly after the death of St Benedict, the monastery stands on the site of what was once Castrum Lamularum, a landscape dotted with rocky outcrops that characterise the Apennine terrain.
The Abbey, the beating heart of Lamoli, has for centuries been a beacon of culture and religious devotion, a landmark for travellers on the ancient routes linking Rome with the Adriatic cities. Its presence catalysed the development of the village, which was once a hub for the trade in fine timber, subsequently becoming a papal fiefdom and then, as historical events unfolded, an integral part of the municipality of Borgo Pace.
Even today, the Abbey’s walls echo with the mantra ‘Ora et Labora’. The interior of the church, with its austere Romanesque beauty, is an oasis of contemplation.
The darkness enveloping the naves is broken only by the rays of light filtering through the central rose window and the single-lancet windows, creating a play of shadows on the raised altar and in the spacious apse. The crypt preserves fragments of an even more distant past, with sculptures dating back to the 6th century.
