Il Garden of Minerva extends along the axis of the gardens that rise from the Villa Comunale towards the medieval Castle. The Garden of Minerva is located exactly halfway along this ideal route and is certainly the most interesting for the historical and artistic values expressed within it. What is evident to the visitor today – thanks to a restoration work completed in September 2000 – is an intriguing series of eighteenth-century elements. Among these, the most distinctive is a long stairs highlighted by cruciform pillars, with stucco decorations, supporting a pergola.
The water distribution system, composed of basins and fountains, one for each terrace, with decorations made using limestone concretions, indicates the presence of abundant springs which, properly channeled, have allowed over the centuries – among various other uses – the cultivation maintenance of the plots. The site has a particular microclimate, favored by the low incidence of north winds, and a favorable exposure, which still today allows the cultivation and spontaneous propagation of plant species demanding in terms of humidity and warmth. The owners of these places were, since the 12th century, the Silvatico family, of which a member, Matteo, between the 13th and 14th centuries, distinguished himself as a prominent physician of the Salernitan School and a profound expert on plants for the production of medicines.
He is the author of the Opus pandectarum medicinae, a precious collection of information on simples, that is on parts of plants used for the production of medicines. In fact, following careful consultation of historical documentation sources, the existence in the area of medieval Salerno of a garden of simples, established in the first two decades of the 1300s by the Salernitan physician and botanist Matteo Silvatico, clearly emerged, to serve the masters of the Medical School.
In this space of extraordinary cultural value, today identifiable precisely in the area of the Garden of Minerva, were cultivated the plants from which active ingredients used for therapeutic purposes were derived; moreover, in this place a real teaching activity was carried out to show the students of the Salernitan Medical School the plants with their names and characteristics (ostensio simplicium). These premises confirm that the garden, located in the area of the ancient site of the hortus sanitatis of the Salernitan Medical School, can be considered the oldest botanical garden linked to a medical school.
Garden of Minerva Hours
From Tuesday to Sunday
Monday: weekly closure for maintenance.
N.B. after the gate closes, it will be possible to visit the Garden for another thirty minutes.
January
from 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
February
from 9:30 AM to 1:00 PM.
March
from 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM.
April
from 9:30 AM to 7:00 PM.
May
from 9:30 AM to 7:30 PM.
June, July and August
from 9:30 AM to 8:00 PM.
September
from 9:30 AM to 7:00 PM.
October
from 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM.
November and December
from 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
Prices Garden of Minerva
Euro 3.00 (full price)
DISCOUNTS (€uro 1.50): School groups of all levels (free entry for the accompanying person); University students (upon presentation of the card). Annual subscription €uro 15.00.
Note: Free entry for tour group guides and children under six years old.
For group visits (reservation required) contact the Garden Office (tel. 089252423 – info@giardinodellaminerva.it)
Information about Orto botanico Giardino della Minerva
Via Ferrante Sanseverino, 1
84121 Salerno
Phone: 089 252423
Email: info@giardinodellaminerva.it
