Pizzo, Calabria

You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Italian. (September 2011) Click [show] for important translation instructions. View a machine-translated version of the Italian article. Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia. Consider adding a topic to this template: there are already 3,072 articles in the main category, and specifying|topic= will aid in categorization. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing Italian Wikipedia article at [[:it:Pizzo (Italia)]]; see its history for attribution. You should also add the template {{Translated|it|Pizzo (Italia)}} to the talk page. For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.

Pizzo U Pizzu (Sicilian)
Comune
Comune di Pizzo
Coat of arms
Location of Pizzo
Pizzo Location of Pizzo in Italy Show map of Italy Pizzo Pizzo (Calabria) Show map of Calabria
Coordinates: 38°44′N 16°10′E / 38.733°N 16.167°E / 38.733; 16.167
Country	Italy
Region	Calabria
Province	Vibo Valentia (VV)
Area [1]
• Total	22.34 km2 (8.63 sq mi)
Elevation	44 m (144 ft)
Population  (31 March 2013)[2]
• Total	9,263
• Density	410/km2 (1,100/sq mi)
Demonym	Napetini or Pizzitani (local)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	89812
Dialing code	0963
ISTAT code	102027
Patron saint	San Giorgio
Saint day	23 April
Website	Official website

Pizzo (Calabrian: U Pizzu), also called Pizzo Calabro, is a seaport and comune in the province of Vibo Valentia (Calabria, southern Italy), situated on a steep cliff overlooking the Gulf of Saint Euphemia.

Fishing is one of the main activities, including that of tuna and coral.

History

As with many other places in Calabria, Pizzo claims ancient origins. The town may have been founded by colonists from an unknown site in ancient Magna Grecia, but there is currently no documentary or archeological evidence to support this. Consequently, the history of Pizzo begins in 1300 when the existence of a community of Basilian monks, a fort, and a fishing village is documented . The name Pizzo (translated either as bird's beak or projecting point) fits perfectly with the tuffa promontory that juts out into the sea near the mouth of the river Angitola.

For centuries tuna was trapped in the beaches around Pizzo, especially in the months of May and June. Despite fading in importance over time this activity continued until the 1970s in the Centofontane area, where nets were spread to corral tuna from offshore. Ruins of the activity remain. The activity is now banned. The Piedigrotta and Prangi areas include some sea caves, and "the cave of the Saracen", although largely eroded today, was supposedly used by Saracen pirates to store booty and people captured during their raids along the coast of Calabria.

The former King of Naples Joachim Murat, who was the brother-in-law of Napoleon, was imprisoned for several days in the town's Aragonese castle and then sentenced to death. He was executed by firing squad on October 13, 1815, in the main hall of the castle and was possibly buried in the church of San Giorgio. Paradoxically, the castle is now called Castello Murat. Inside the castle is the Provincial Museum Murat.

In 1783 the town was almost destroyed by an earthquake, and it suffered some damage from the same cause in 1905.

Main sights

It has an old castle, built by the Aragonese in the 15th century, in which Joachim Murat, ex-king of Naples, was shot on October 13, 1815.

Other sights include the Baroque church of St. George (1632) and the cave church of Piedigrotta (17th century)

Food

Pizzo is famous in the area for its Tartufo, a large ball of ice cream filled with molten chocolate.

Transport

The nearest airport is Lamezia Terme Airport.^[3]

Climate

References

Notes

External links

Media related to Pizzo at Wikimedia Commons