“THE FOUNTAIN OF SAN MATTEO”

The town of Rutino has a strong devotion to San Matteo. In fact, when in 954 the body of the Apostle was found in the plain of Casalvelino, at the confluence of the Velino with the Alento river, the news spread rapidly throughout the territory and, of course, the bishop of Capaccio was informed, who decided to transport the sacred remains from the Casalvelino plain to the Basilica del Calpazio, at the time the cathedral of the vast diocese. It must have been a sunny and sultry summer day the one chosen by the bishop for the translation. And it was a huge effort for the porters to climb the hill of Rutino with the pitiful load of the Apostle’s Body. Tired and thirsty, they stopped several times; and right at the gates of the town they witnessed a prodigy. From the rock, where they had placed the sacred reliquary, a source of fresh and crystalline water emerged.
The “Fountain of San Matteo” still exists and a plaque commemorates the miracle. According to some historians, Rutino also bears signs and memory of the event in the toponym: the adjective “rutòs” in Greek means, in fact, “flowing”, “current”, naturally called water.