Legend of the Treasure of San Marco in Aidone
Hasan Almasi su unsplash
Legend has it that a treasure protected by a spell and a tragic love story.
It is said that a strange knight wandered with his trusty steed through the streets of Aidone. One evening in May, after three uninterrupted days of walking, he allowed himself and his horse some rest. But the knight's rest was tormented by the memory of his beloved, who had mysteriously disappeared. It was then that a miracle occurred: a large water lily opened and from its corolla appeared a splendid woman. She turned to the knight, telling him that his beloved had been kidnapped by the fairies who guard the treasure of San Marco, who had made his beloved their queen. However, the woman told the knight that there was a way to free his beloved: if on the night of the full moon, the night of the fair that was held every seven years, he went to the Church of San Marco and broke the chains that bound the white bull that guarded the treasure, his beloved and the treasure with the queen's wedding ring would be ransomed. The woman finally recommended the knight not to touch the woman until sunrise.
The knight waited for over a year until the night of the full moon and, guided by the stars, reached the Church of San Marco. As announced by the woman of the water lily, that night there was a great fair and the knight was welcomed joyfully as the chosen one. Beautiful young women gave him flowers that, in his hands, became gold.
The fairies explained to him that, during the whole night of the fair, everything touched by human hands would turn to gold. The knight headed into the valley where herds and flocks were grazing, spotted the white bull and with his drawn sword struck the chain that tied the bull by the neck. The chain broke and with it the spell was broken. The knight, guided by his star, set out towards the palace of the queen of the fairies. As soon as the knight finally saw his beloved, he ran to her and held her in his arms, forgetting the warning of the water lily woman. It was then that his beloved was transformed into a beautiful golden statue. The knight, having lost all hope of being reunited with his beloved in life, climbed onto the back of his trusty steed, reached the top of Mount Molera and threw himself into the great abyss to be reunited with his beloved.
This story is told in the Paesane Legends" by Ettore C.apra Cordova.
