From Paganism to Christianity
First consecrated to the god Attis, consort of Cybele, Goddess of the creative and destructive force of Nature, the San Michele alle Grottelle Hermitage then became a place of Christian worship dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel.
Story of the Hermitage
Initially built in a natural cavity to be used as a place of worship for pagan gods, the Hermitage's structural layout remained unchanged until the advent of Christianity, when the practice of certain religious functions led to the need to build and modify the space. The structures of the refuge and the church presumably date back to a period ranging from the eleventh to the fourteenth century. Information about the hermitage is quite scarce until 1538, when it was bought by the Certosa of San Lorenzo, becoming the burial place of the abbot Bernardino Brancaccio. The first bibliographic evidence about the hermitage dates back to the 1870s and 1880s, which was followed by a long period of abandonment, then ended with the site's recovery.
Heritage
Several historical artifacts that testify to the passage of various eras and Christian cults are preserved in the hermitage. There are particularly noteworthy remains of frescoes dating from the 14th to late 17th centuries, depicting biblical scenes and hagiographic cycles, the tomb of Abbot Brancaccio and an altar, behind which there is an niche shrine dated around 1400 and dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel and St. James of Compostela.
