San Cristoforo, Levico and the traces of a distant time.
The church of San Cristoforo is one of the oldest in the Pergine area: its existence is documented as early as 1215, though its origins reach further back. It stands on a small hill, once surrounded by the waters of the lake, in a place bound to fishing and to the lives of the inhabitants of Ischia and Canale.
According to a tradition recorded in the seventeenth century, a Roman temple dedicated to Diana, goddess of the hunt and of nature, once stood here. The legend is supported by the discovery, in 1762, of a circular tomb containing ashes and ancient artefacts, and by the memory of frescoes — painted over in 1703 — depicting the goddess with her nymphs.
In the Middle Ages the church was entrusted to a monk as its keeper; from the fifteenth century it passed to the parish priest of Pergine, who maintained it in exchange for fishing rights and agricultural tithes.
After centuries of neglect and secular use, the building was restored several times. Despite the alterations, the little church keeps intact its charm as a sacred place suspended between history, mythology and nature.
The area of Levico Terme has been inhabited since the Bronze Age, as numerous archaeological finds attest. The name of the settlement may derive from the Latin “laevus vicus”, meaning “village on the left bank” (of the river Brenta), although some modern scholars suggest a pre-Latin origin.
In 1858, at the “Capitelo del Prà” near the railway station, Roman tombs were unearthed, including a large limestone sarcophagus. Levico also lay on the Roman road that connected Feltre to Trento along Valsugana.
San Cristoforo, Levico and the traces of a distant time.
The church of San Cristoforo is one of the oldest in the Pergine area: its existence is documented as early as 1215, though its origins reach further back. It stands on a small hill, once surrounded by the waters of the lake, in a place bound to fishing and to the lives of the inhabitants of Ischia and Canale.
According to a tradition recorded in the seventeenth century, a Roman temple dedicated to Diana, goddess of the hunt and of nature, once stood here. The legend is supported by the discovery, in 1762, of a circular tomb containing ashes and ancient artefacts, and by the memory of frescoes — painted over in 1703 — depicting the goddess with her nymphs.
In the Middle Ages the church was entrusted to a monk as its keeper; from the fifteenth century it passed to the parish priest of Pergine, who maintained it in exchange for fishing rights and agricultural tithes.
After centuries of neglect and secular use, the building was restored several times. Despite the alterations, the little church keeps intact its charm as a sacred place suspended between history, mythology and nature.
The area of Levico Terme has been inhabited since the Bronze Age, as numerous archaeological finds attest. The name of the settlement may derive from the Latin “laevus vicus”, meaning “village on the left bank” (of the river Brenta), although some modern scholars suggest a pre-Latin origin.
In 1858, at the “Capitelo del Prà” near the railway station, Roman tombs were unearthed, including a large limestone sarcophagus. Levico also lay on the Roman road that connected Feltre to Trento along Valsugana.