The Cave of the Saints is located at the beginning of The Via Sacra (The Sacred Way), the path that pilgrims from all walks of life used to walk to visit the main temple of Demeter in Sicily, on the Enna plateau, although nobody knows the exact location of the temple.
In not distant times, the cave was used as a stable. It was probably all frescoed, but only those on the left are still visible. Paradoxically, it seems that the layer of dust over the frescoes has preserved them.
The frescoes, according to some historians, date back to the year 1000. Actually, they seem to be of Norman-Byzantine style, but the main issue is to make out the reason why the artist painted these beautiful frescoes on the walls of an isolated and remote cave.
To solve the mystery, it is necessary to know that the people of the past were loath to destroy the temples of the indigenous gods; instead, they preferred to reconvert them. Therefore, it is likely that The Cave of the Saints was a place of worship for pilgrims who went on pilgrimage to the temple of Demeter. Later, it was converted into a place of Christian worship by the unknown author of the frescoes who somehow wanted to preserve the sacredness of the place.
Ettore Grillo author of these books:
– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily
– A Hidden Sicilian History
– The Vibrations of Words
– Travels of the Mind
Ettore Grillo's Blog 