The Sacred Forest or Monster Park is one of the most unusual places in Italy, located in the town of Bomarzo.
The area is alive with monsters and the sound of water, and it can seem as if time has stopped forever in the twilight of the Middle Ages.
The Renaissance brought many historical wonders, including the Sacred Forest. Scholars still disagree on the history of the appearance. A beautiful version says that Pierfrancesco II “Vicino” Orsini founded the park in 1547 as a gift to his beloved wife Giulia.
The park was not completed until 33 years later in 1580.
The first reliable mention of the park is in a 1563 letter by the poet Annibale Caro, a friend of Orsini, in which he speaks of “extravagant and supernatural things” in Signor Vicino’s grove.
Then called the Sacred Forest, the park was given the name Monster Park in the 20th century because of its great profusion of characters and creatures from legends and myths.
After the death of its creator in 1585, the park was of little interest to posterity. For a long time the park was simply forgotten, its intimidating figures were only seen by shepherds, but this was to the statues’ benefit.
In the middle of the 20th century the park began to come back to life when the Bettini family took possession of it.
After restoration work in 1954 the Sacred Forest was opened to the public.
If you wish, you can add additional places from our list above. The programme is agreed with the client in advance.
All days except December 25, May 1, January 1
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