San Marco in Lamis is a town in the Province of Foggia fully inserted in the Gargano National Park and part of the Gargano Mountain Community.
The city's history is linked with the convent of San Matteo Evangelista, whose building at first sight can be mistaken for an ancient fortress, but it’s instead a Capuchin monastery dating back between ninth-tenth century. After the unification of Italy, San Marco in Lamis was affected by the phenomenon of banditry, with about fifty local bandits who ended up shot or killed in combat.
Among the most developed economic activities, particularly popular is the local goldsmith's art, carried out by real families of goldsmiths who handed down the craft from father to son, inspired by the Neapolitan goldsmith school.
What to see
San Mario in Lamis is a town rich in history and proofs of its past.
The Convent of San Matteo Evangelista is perched on a hill surrounded by the green of the ash trees. The date of the foundation is not certain, it is assumed to correspond with the Barbarian Invasions, therefore the period of the Lombards, who in order to reach the Cave of San Michele Arcangelo, whom they worshipped, stopped by the Convent.
Very impressive is also the Sanctuary of Santa Maria di Stignano, of medieval origin, where the Virgin is worshipped. The tradition tells of a blind person of the area, who in his various wanderings to beg 'for food, was surprised in his sleep by the voice of a beautiful woman, who at the same time, gave him back his sight and showed him the presence of an image, hidden among the branches of a big and strong oak tree.
The miraculously cured person would have immediately informed the nearby residents of Castelpagano which, affected by a double miracle, came in procession to the place, and built a small church where the vision of the Virgin took place, precisely under the second arch of the left aisle for those entering the temple.
Events
• Good Friday – Procession of the Fracchie
• 19/21 September – Feast of San Matteo