Hermitage delle Carceri – Assisi

Description

The Hermitage delle Carceri stands on the slopes of Monte Subasio about 4km from Assisi (PG), 791m above sea level, near a cluster of natural caves used by Early Christian hermits. It was donated by the Municipality of Assisi to the Benedictines who later ceded it to St. Francis so that he could pray and meditate with his followers there. Extended in 1400 by St. Bernardino of Siena who added the Church of Santa Maria delle Carceri, incorporating an earlier chapel, the hermitage stands in a wood of ancient elms surrounded by caves and small chapels and still today attracts pilgrims who come to retreat in contemplation here. Arriving from the road that climbs Monte Subasio, a cobbled lane leads to a brick vault which opens onto the Monks’ Cloister, a triangular terrace with a sheer drop overlooking the Fosso delle Carceri. Doors at the ends of the cloister lead to the monks’ refectory and the Church of Santa Maria delle Carceri. The monks’ cells are located above the refectory. A steep staircase leads from the convent to a beech wood and the cave of St. Francis. Caves used by St. Francis’ earliest companions can be accessed from the path behind that.

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