Rossano

According to archaeological excavations, settlements on the hills around Rossano already existed between XI and VIII sec. BC e. The territory of the region from the VIII century BC. e. It was colonized by the Greeks, nearby was Sybaris - one of the largest cities in Great Greece , so for a long time until the late Middle Ages the Greeks in the region made up a significant part of the population. In the 2nd century AD e. Emperor Hadrian rebuilt the port, which existed even under the Greeks, which could take up to 300 ships. In the III century. BC e. Calabria was conquered by the Romans. During the time of the Roman Empire, the city was called Rocianum ( lat. Roscianum ), it appeared shortly after 193. In Antonina's Itinerary, the city ​​is mentioned as one of the most important outposts of Calabria ^[1] .

Even later, the Goths, led first by Alaric I , and in the next century, the Totiles could not take Rossano.

In the early Middle Ages, this region belonged to the Byzantine Empire , in the city was located the "rate" of the stratig . A significant relic of this period, which has survived to this day, is the Rossian Codex .

The Saracens also failed to take Rossano when, in 976, under the leadership of Abu l Qashima, they destroyed Apulia and Calabria with fire and sword. In 982, the Saracens who retreated from Otto II took refuge in the city (presumably it was Rossano) ^[2] , from where the emperor knocked them out. Otto II was the first to tear the city away from the Byzantine Empire for a short time. He moved the courtyard to Rossano, frightening off the Arabs at Rossano in 982. However, they retreated south and already on July 13 at the Otton suffered a crushing defeat from them, barely escaped ^[2] and was forced to leave Calabria.

In 1060, the entire region was captured by the Normans . Despite this, the city remained committed to the Byzantine rite for a long time. Under the Hohenstaufen and Anjou dynasty, the city ​​retained its privileges.

Decline began when in the 15th century the city passed into the ownership of the Sforza family, and from them as a dowry of Bona to the Polish king Sigismund . In 1558, he was annexed to the Kingdom of Naples . During this period, Rossano again became the cultural center of the region. Then, over the course of several centuries, the city passed from hand to hand, and in 1861 it became part of a united Italy.

• The Archbishop's Museum , which houses the famous Russian Codex , entered in 2015 in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register ^[3] .

• Church of Santa Maria Panagia , X-XI centuries The well-preserved one-nave (7 mx 4.50 m) Byzantine building.
• Cathedral of Our Lady of Achiropita ( Miraculous ), a Byzantine temple built in the 11th century. Rebuilt in the XVII and XVIII centuries. It stands on the foundation of two previous temples: VII and IX centuries. The font and the bell tower date back to the 14th century. It is famous for the Miraculous Image of Our Lady of the Fresco, dated from 580 to the middle of the VIII century. In the 19th century, a unique Rossian codex was discovered in the sacristy of the cathedral.
• Church of San Marco , IX-X centuries. Five-domed Byzantine temple, square in plan (8 mx 8 m outside and 6.75 mx 6.75 m inside). Transparent modern insets in the floor allow you to see that there is a crypt or basement under the temple. There are remains of frescoes in poor condition: a fragment of the painting of the late X century and a fragment of the XIII century.
• Church of San Bernardino, built in 1462 for the monastery of the same name.

• , is located 15 kilometers from the city on top of the mountain. Famous monastery in the Norman period. He possessed one of the richest libraries with a well-known scriptorium : codes and translations of ancient manuscripts created here are still kept in the Vatican library , in the Grottaferrat Abbey and in other libraries around the world.

• Neil Rossansky (910 - September 26, 1004), Calabrian Greek, saint.
• John VII (Pope) (650-18 October 707), originally Calabrian Greek.
• John XVI (−26 August 1001), antipope from April 997 to February 998.
• Bartholomew the Younger (c. 980 - c. 1050), Calabrian Greek, saint.

• Official site of the settlement (Italian)