The Fonte della terra (earth spring) is a archaeological monument of the peasant civilization of Altino dating back to year 1558 and it is the symbol of the fertility of the territory which stretches between the rivers Aventino, Sangro and Rio Secco, and which includes habitats and Sites of Community Importance (SCI) like the enchanting Oasis of the lake of Serranella and the juniper woods of Rio Secco that both host rare flora and fauna. In 2019 the monumental fountain was restored and it is made of two spouts coming out from human masks and a basin whose stone frame sketches a barrel vault, a rectangular basin was added on its left side.

The story of this romantic spring in the area of “Fonte” is cut on a plaque and starts in 1558, when the feudal lord “Don Roderigo de Portocarrero, a magistrate in L’Aquila, husband of Anna Diaz de Grado a baroness of Altino, orders to maestro Berardino to build the Earth spring”. That spring brilliantly represents the great heritage of landscape and nature surrounding the territory of Altino which even included a sulphur spring in the hamlet of Briccioli until recently.

Beside the rich landscape of the Regional Reserve of the Oasis of Serranella, and despite the blatant anthropic transformations connected to the industrialization of the Val di Sangro – Aventino area, Altino still keeps many areas with a huge environmental value, such as the SCI area “Ginepreti, bosco planiziale e gole del torrente Rio Secco” which stretches for about c hectares with its juniper woods, woodlands and canyons, the Rupe del centro storico, the Calvario – Briccioli, the relieves of Colle – Castellana, the calanchi of Le Macchie and the arena terraces with some downy oaks in Sant’Angelo whose typically Mediterranean shrubs with rare species have a special bio-geographical value in the whole. All this is possible thanks to the abundant springs and river springs of Altino.

[Credits | Text: Ottavio Di Renzo De Laurentis | Translation: Mirella Rapa | Voice and music: Studio Qreate | Photo: Laura Di Biase]