Orria

Historians assume that the first settlement in the area of Orria dates back to 600 A.D. after the destruction of Novi Velia.
The name Orria probably derives from the Latin “horrea”, meaning “granary”.
Legend has it that a Lombard duke coming from Calabria stopped in Casalvelino to take some bread. The wheat fields, however, had already been reaped so he headed towards Mount Stella and, noticing a spontaneous wheat field, said “Horrea mea vido” (“I see my granaries”). The first mention to the town of Orria dates back to 1496, when a royal document stated its dependence from the fiefdom of Gioi.
In 1476 the King sold Gioi and remained there until 1772, when Ferdinand IV of Bourbon agreed to divide of the fief.
In the XVI century a terrible humanitarian catastrophe caused by a severe famine, followed by the plague epidemic of 1656, decimated the entire community of Orria.
After 1500, following the renouncement of Ferrante Sanseverino to his possessions, the Cilentan land was dismembered and sold to various nobles.
Then, in 1806 Orria gained jurisdictional power over the locality of Piano Vetrale, famous for having given birth to Paolo De Matteis, great painter of the 1600s, also known for the paintings depicting the Holy Virgin. Some of his most renowned works of art are: the Madonna with Child (Naples, Church of S. Giovanni dei Fiorentini); the Holy Family (Abbey of Montecassino); the Crucifixion (Naples, the Duomo); Sleeping Venus (Rome); Diana and the Nymphs (London); Erminia among the shepherds (Vienna museum).

Historians assume that the first settlement in the area of Orria dates back to 600 A.D. after the destruction of Novi Velia.
The name Orria probably derives from the Latin “horrea”, meaning “granary”.
Legend has it that a Lombard duke coming from Calabria stopped in Casalvelino to take some bread. The wheat fields, however, had already been reaped so he headed towards Mount Stella and, noticing a spontaneous wheat field, said “Horrea mea vido” (“I see my granaries”). The first mention to the town of Orria dates back to 1496, when a royal document stated its dependence from the fiefdom of Gioi.
In 1476 the King sold Gioi and remained there until 1772, when Ferdinand IV of Bourbon agreed to divide of the fief.
In the XVI century a terrible humanitarian catastrophe caused by a severe famine, followed by the plague epidemic of 1656, decimated the entire community of Orria.
After 1500, following the renouncement of Ferrante Sanseverino to his possessions, the Cilentan land was dismembered and sold to various nobles.
Then, in 1806 Orria gained jurisdictional power over the locality of Piano Vetrale, famous for having given birth to Paolo De Matteis, great painter of the 1600s, also known for the paintings depicting the Holy Virgin. Some of his most renowned works of art are: the Madonna with Child (Naples, Church of S. Giovanni dei Fiorentini); the Holy Family (Abbey of Montecassino); the Crucifixion (Naples, the Duomo); Sleeping Venus (Rome); Diana and the Nymphs (London); Erminia among the shepherds (Vienna museum).