Arena

Arena is probably the oldest town in the Serre area. Of its castle and the family that built it we have news since Roger the Norman’s donation to Brunone of Cologne of the vast estate between Arena (precisely) and Stilo.
The town stands perched on a hill from which it looks proudly over the Marepotamo valley and the plain of Ciano.
The town is dominated by the vestiges of the Concublet castle, one of the most historically rich and fascinating places in the entire region. Walking among the imposing ruins, one has the impression of still hearing the pattering of horses or catching a glimpse of the figure of John the leper wandering in the recesses of the manor.
The fortress was built by Roger the Norman in a strategic location to provide protection for the city of Mileto, which the Great Count wanted to elect as capital of the Kingdom. Unfortunately, not much remains of the original construction, which was mortally wounded, like much of the surrounding area, by the devastating earthquake of 1783.

Crossing the bridge that spans the moat, one reaches the entrance portal, encircled on both sides by the surviving bases of two mighty corner towers, characterized by a peculiar groove tapering upward. Crossing the threshold one immediately gets a sense of the importance and majesty that the manor must have had in ancient times, when the rich and powerful Concublet family inhabited its halls. However, the magnificence of court life can be savored again during “La castellana,” a kind of beauty contest in medieval costume during which the woman to whom the keys of the castle will be symbolically handed over is chosen and celebrated here every summer. The historical re-enactment is by number of figures and themed performances among the most beautiful and characteristic in all of Calabria, and each year attracts an increasing number of participants.
The Concublet castle is one of those places that one would never want to leave, such is the fascination it exerts on the visitor, but it is not the only thing worth seeing in Arena. Despite the fact that the 1783 earthquake heavily affected the town, the village retains its medieval structure intact with passages, narrow streets, alleys and stairways that are grafted onto each other in a splendid interplay of architectural and urbanistic cross-references.
The historic center is rich in portals and other decorative granite elements, the work of Serbian stonemasons, and is propped up by interesting stately mansions.
A compulsory stop is certainly at the church of Madonna delle Grazie, home of the very old confraternity of the same name.
The elegant curved brick facade recalls in a rather pointed manner the well-known facade of the church of Addolorata in Serra San Bruno. The visitor’s gaze is immediately drawn to the elegant statue of the titular, an early 19th-century work by Calabrian sculptor Domenico De Lorenzo. The Virgin is depicted with the child in her arms in the act of sheltering, under her mantle, some purging souls who implore her intercession. The scarlet color of the robe and the highly refined features of the face have led to the statue being renamed by the people of Arenesi as “the red-clothed beauty.”

The simulacrum of Our Lady of Grace is placed in the niche of the high altar, a remarkable work by Serrese marble workers. The nave is decorated with rich stucco work, also by a Serrese workshop, and frescoes by Diego Grillo, Carmelo Zimatore’s nephew, among which the great fresco in the vault depicting the Madonna and Child between the apostles and the Blessing Divine Father stands out for its grandeur and beauty.
The church, however, holds another statue of the Virgin: the Madonna del Buon Consiglio, a masterpiece by Serrese sculptor Raffaele Regio of 1823. The statue recalls the iconographic model of the Madonna delle Grazie of Mongiana with Mary lying on her side above a cloud.
Also by De Lorenzo, the statue of St. Joseph from 1797 is worth mentioning.
It also has a brick facade with stone inserts, as does the Matrix Church of Arena, Santa Maria de Latinis. The building is decorated with graceful neoclassical stuccoes and houses some valuable late 18th-century statues by the great Neapolitan sculptor Gennaro Franzese, such as the beautiful St. Michael the Archangel, the Apollonian Christ Resurrected, and the Immaculate attributed to Franzese by art historian Gianfrancesco Solferino.