Santuario San Michele di Mezzo

The Sanctuary of San Michele di Mezzo is located in the hamlet of Carpineto Fisciano, about 500 meters high above sea level, it dates back to 600.

At the time it offered shelter to pilgrims who crossed the mountain along the path of devotion, which was signed between the place that served as a hostel with cave paintings rather coarse, arranged in triple circle, called "quadrilli" because then framed as small paintings to maintain memory and testimony. The Michele caves were used for the incubatio, healing practice that served to channel visions or dreams benefits.

The original hermitage is located in a natural cave where he was made an underground chapel where they practiced the cult of the Archangel Michael, the warrior saint, the patron before the Byzantines and then the Lombards and protector of water, of which the territory of Monti picentini is very rich.

St. Michael's Cave, secure karst, it seems perhaps to be the oldest place of worship dedicated to the Archangel of our area: it consists of two cavities, the first of which elevated compared to the second and most recent assignment, while a beautiful staircase tortile makes access to the second site, which houses an icon of Mary Hodegetria (She who shows the way), clear image of Byzantine origin had to be as Byzantine monks who practiced the first cults in this cave, probably after escaping Arabs who had invaded Sicily. That's why some local historians put forth the hypothesis that the foundation can date back to the Byzantine-Norman. Certainly it must have already existed in the year 1000, because there he visited Pope Gregory VII during his exile in Salerno.

The complex of San Michele di Mezzo given the simplicity and small size of its cavity, suggests that it was a small country oratory around which is then built the sanctuary to ensure the control of agricultural and productive assets of the valley. The church was begun in the late '700 and' 800 beginning: written in 1822 documenting the work still going on in the sanctuary, and an inscription engraved on the front of the church bears witness to the date of completion: MAGNE amabo 1843. the current church is under the title of "St. Angel in Panicola ", the name comes from the fact that the area was probably cultivated with millet, or Speltra, which represented the most important dish power of the territory. Panicola comes from the Latin "panicum" or "panicium" that indicates precisely the type of crop "panicum miliaceum", better known by the name of a mile, now used for animal feed, but which in the past had been widely used for human food and it is now used in some traditional or ritual, known under the "pudding" name. With the arrival of the Lombards, the Angel of Panìco merged with Archangel Michael, becoming S. Michele Basso, revered in the underground cave. Via the ramp that leads into the church then becomes S. Michele di Mezzo, so called to distinguish it from the sanctuary of St. Michael Cima, located at 1567 meters s.l.m. formed by a chapel of remote origins, to which around 1950 was joined by a larger church. Inside there is also a shelter with fireplace and deposits which is always open for the faithful who come on pilgrimage. This route between the three sites in which we honor the Archangel Michael was a kind of purifying journey for pilgrims who descended into the cave (S. Bass Michele) that symbolized the descent into the underworld, then ascended to the upper church (St. Michael middle) representing an intermediate state of purification, and finally reaching the top of Mount (S. Michele Cima), purify their spirits and they felt definitely closer to God. After a period of decline that has led to the almost complete abandonment of the whole, in 2011 the Sanctuary has been restored and reopened to the public. Along the road that leads to the shrine are located the 12 shrines of the Via Crucis that marked the old path. Tradition has it that the ascent to the sanctuary to happen 2 times a year: on Easter Monday, and September 29, when the sanctuary is the destination of a procession that saw the faithful walk to the Shrine carrying piggyback statue of the saint.