Spread throughout Italy, they certainly arouse curiosity every time they hit again the headlines – even for just a moment. Most of these villages are lost in the mountains, and they are often the subject of legends that are passed from generation to generation.

They are abandoned villages, little places that over the course of time remained empty because of a natural disaster or negligence, or simply because far too distant from the main urban centres.

Cerreto di Saludecio is one of these abandoned villages in Emilia-Romagna, more precisely in the area of Rimini, just a few km from the medieval village of Mondaino, in the territories that are part of the Municipality of Saludecio.

Nestled on the hills that shape the suggestive valley of the River Conca, this old fortified village boasts a very old history. Presumably founded in the 9th century AD, it survived until the end of the 19th century, when it was gradually abandoned.

The first written record about Cerreto dates back to 1231, when it was ruld by the Municipality of Rimini; in the 15th century, the village was conquered by the Venetians until 1860 when it went under the Papal State’s rule.

Known as the “Land of Fools” because of the ridiculous behavior of its people, today most of the few remaining houses are abandoned, and in the deserted lanes, time seems to have stopped.

A very old legend tells about how Cerreto was known as the “Land of the Dumbs” of the valley, because of the many, invented stories about the people of this little village and their allegedly foolish behaviours.

Among the funniest stories, one tells about an expedition to Rimini with the aim of buying enough doses of wisdom. However, feeling tired, the “Cerretians” stopped halfway and went back home, saying that they would have covered the second half of the journey the following day.

Another curious story is about a day of celebrations during which the whole village was preparing polenta. Instead of preparing it at home, that day, they decided to use the common well as a pot.

While the villagers filled the well with hot water and yellow flour, one of them decided to jump into it to check on the polenta.

As soon as they heard him swallow, the chaos broke out and they rebelled, thinking that he wanted to eat the polenta all by himself, so they immediately jumped into the well to reach him.

To honor the memory and traditions of these people that inspired all these extraordinary stories, a great Carnival was organized until recently, including the “fire of the clown” and many stories recalling the anecdotes on the people of Cerreto.

Today, the few surviving houses of the village aren’t the original ones of the people that were mocked in the legends, for which they didn’t have any fault anyway, if not being slightly more eccentric people than usual.

Are you eager to add Cerreto in Saludecio to your bucket list?
Here is how to get there: first drive to Mondaino and then follow the directions to Tavoleto (provincial road SP80). After 3 km, you will reach Serra; follow the signs for Cerreto taking the street on your right.