Capri & Anacapri


 

Capri is an island of limestone rock that represents the outermost tip of the mountain chain on the Sorrentine peninsula. The coastline, whose dolomite cliffs fall right to the sea in many spots, is dotted with countless caves and surrounded by reefs whose shapes suggest fantastic creations.
Mount Tiberio (334 m.), to the east, and Mount Solaro (589 m.) to the west are the two main peaks on the island. Between these heights, on a saddle-shaped ridge connecting the Marina Grande, ("Large Marina") - north end - and the Marina Piccola, ("Small Marina") to the south - is the town of Capri (138 m.). The other town, Anacapri (286 m.), sits in the large, verdant plain to the west of Mount Solaro. Capri contains a vast variety of plants and flowers, offering no fewer than 850 species and 130 varieties, despite its extremely small surface area, including some rarities, such as the dwarf palm, which has survived in a number of inaccessible areas. In terms of wildlife, many species of marine animals enrich the surrounding sea. On land, there are many types of non-migratory birds, such as the large diomedei gulls, and there are also reptiles, whose number includes the very rare lizard of the Faraglioni rocks. After visiting Capri in 29 BC, Caesar Augustus was so taken with the islands beauty that he bought it from the city of Naples, giving up the nearby island of Ischia - much larger - in return. Legend has it that his successor, Tiberius, who lived there from 27 to 37 AD, built twelve villas, dedicating them to the twelve gods of Olympus. From the most magnificent of these dwellings, the "Villa Jovis", he ruled the Roman Empire. Other emperors spent time in Capri, which was visited and inhabited by Roman nobles up through the IVth century AD.
Beginning in the second half of the 18th century, the island became a preferred destination of the Bourbons, who went there to hunt quayle and simply to travel. Many of the increasing number of visitors from the north who came to take in the magnificently primitive nature of the south included the island in their travel plans and gave the world its first images of Capri.
Unfortunately, their arrival also brought about the systematic plundering of the extensive Roman ruins, preserved almost intact throughout the centuries. As a result, a tremendously rich heritage was devastated and dispersed, so that today only a few traces remain. These are found primarily in the digs that are resumed at periodic intervals.
Starting in the first half of the last century, in the wake of the discovery of The Blue Grotto, or "Blue Cave", the flow of Italian and foreign tourists began, being drawn to the island by the climate, the hospitality of the people and the colors and magnetic atmosphere of the various sites. Writers, painters, exiles, rich and eccentric visitors: from the end of the 1800's until the Second World War, many chose the island as their year-round or seasonal residence, building villas and contributing to the creation of the multi-facetted, multi-lingual, cosmopolitan colony that made the name Capri famous and established the island's myth.