http://www.gardenrouteitalia.it/Vicolo Ferrante Sanseverino 1, 84121 Salerno
Opening hours: June-July-August from 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The current configuration of the garden, owned by the city, is the result of a restoration carried out in 2000. Elements attributable to the 17th and 18th centuries linked to the history of prestigious Salerno families can be identified; the last owner, Professor Giovanni Capasso, donated the property to the Asilo di Mendicità after World War II. The origins are much older dating back to at least the 12th century, as shown by an ancient parchment preserved at the Abbey of Cava. At the beginning of the 14th century Matteo Silvatico created there a Orto dei Semplici, forerunner of the future European botanical gardens, where he cultivated some plants useful for obtaining active ingredients to be used for therapeutic purposes; he also carried out didactic activities there for the students of the Scuola Medica (ostensio simplicium). The medieval garden is located about two meters below the present elevation; today it is spread over six terraces that overcome a drop in elevation of more than 16 meters, ideal morphology for creating the waterway of the nine fountains. Of particular interest are the so-called Palazzo Capasso Fountain, a rocaille-decorated nymphaeum from before the 18th century, and the Gorgon Fountain. More than 200 plant species have been planted in the garden, those largely used by the Medical School and described in Silvatico’s Opus Pandectarum Medicinae; essences include the legendary mandrake (Mandragora officinalis) with extraordinary powers, Colocasia esculenta and Indian ginseng (Withania somnifera).
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