Saint Bruno's charterhouse in the woods of the Serre
In the heart of the Serre, the forested mountains between the Aspromonte and the Sila, at about 800 metres among magnificent forests of silver fir and beech, stands the Certosa di Serra San Bruno, one of the oldest and most important monasteries of the Carthusian order. It was founded in 1091 by Saint Bruno of Cologne, the founder of the Carthusians, who, after creating the Grande Chartreuse in the French Alps, came to Calabria at the invitation of the Norman Count Roger, and here he spent the last years of his life, dying in 1101. The town of Serra San Bruno grew up around the monastery, with beautiful granite churches and a tradition of woodworking and stone carving.
The charterhouse, largely destroyed by the terrible earthquake of 1783 and rebuilt in the following century, is still inhabited by a community of Carthusian monks, who live in silence and solitude, in prayer and work, according to the rule of Saint Bruno, and is therefore closed to the public. However, visitors can see the evocative ruins of the old Baroque façade, destroyed by the earthquake, and visit the Museo della Certosa, which, through a reconstruction of a monk's cell, objects and documents, tells the life of the Carthusians. A short walk through the woods leads to the church of Santa Maria del Bosco, built where Saint Bruno lived as a hermit, and to a small lake with a statue of the saint kneeling in the water, a place of pilgrimage and great peace. The surrounding forests are among the most beautiful in southern Italy.
Tip: respect the silence of the place; walk to Santa Maria del Bosco and the lake of Saint Bruno through the fir forest.
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