Subiaco Abbey

The Sacro Speco, meaning 'Holy Cave,' is the sanctuary at Subiaco Abbey built around the cave where Saint Benedict of Nursia lived as a hermit in the early 6th century. It was from this retreat that Benedict developed his monastic Rule and founded twelve small monasteries in the surrounding valley before eventually moving to Monte Cassino.

Yes, the monastery contains extensive medieval frescoes, including what is widely regarded as the earliest known realistic portrait of Saint Francis of Assisi, painted before the saint's official canonization. The lower church features works dating from the 13th century attributed to the Sienese school.

The monastic complex sits on the slopes of Mount Taleo near the town of Subiaco in the Lazio region of Italy, about 70 kilometers east of Rome. It is divided into a lower church (Sacro Speco) and an upper church, both carved into the rock of the mountainside.

Saint Benedict lived as a hermit in the cave at Subiaco for approximately three years before establishing a community of twelve monasteries in the Aniene valley below. His experiences at Subiaco laid the groundwork for the Benedictine Rule he later formalized at Monte Cassino, which became the foundation of Western monasticism.