VIETRI SUL MARE

Vietri sul Mare is the first town of the Amalfi Coast we encounter after Salerno, which is only three kilometres away. In the Ancient Age Vietri was an Etruscan town, then it had fallen under the Samnites' domination and finally under the Roman rule. Vietri is famous worldwide for its hand-crafted ceramics.

The traditional decorative motifs refer to an archaic style, out of time and space. Colours used by Vietri craftsmen represent the Mediterranean marinas: blue backgrounds and skys merging with the sea. Creative synthesis and the purity of its colours are the characteristics marking the style of the Vietrese production. The expressive procedure is always the same: colours are approached with its contrast, without passages or shading. This is the thread that joins the different stages of tradition, that has been renewed in style and shapes, but never betrays the quality of the production, characterized by bright, massive enamel and by the fast and immediate use of paint-brushes.

However we cannot forget that Vietri is also a tourist resort. The centre, overlooked by mount San Liberatore, lies on a terraced hill arising above the sea.

The main monument is the Church of San Giovanni Battista (St. John the Baptist), with its elegant dome covered with majolica. Underlying the town is Marina of Vietri, with a its seashore which offer many tourist amenities, with a Saracen Tower of XVI century.