In 1282, the Virgin Mary appeared in a dream to a friar named Nicholas. During the apparition she promised to send a white dove to the Caperrina hill where she wanted a church built in her name. The cornerstone for the Shrine of Our Lady of Montalto was laid in 1295 by Queen Constance of Sicily. It was a monastery for Cistercian nuns from 1389 until 1866. The Santuario della Madonna di Montalto was severely damaged during the 1908 earthquake and rebuilt in 1930. This view of the bell tower gives you a hint at the beauty of this Gothic and Romanesque structure.
