The Costiera Amalfitana, stretches along the eastern coast of the Sorrentine Peninsula in Salerno province and can rightly be defined as a landscape of outstanding cultural value, thanks to the astonishing work of both nature and man. Its dramatic topography and historical evolution, has produced exceptional cultural and natural scenic values, Nature is both unspoiled and harmoniously fused with the results of man’s activity. The landscape is marked by rocky areas, wood and maquis, but also by citrus groves and vineyards, grown wherever human beings could find a suitable spot.
The Costiera Amalfitana covers 11.231 hectares a large area that encompasses 15 municipalities, agricultural lands and three natural reserves. The region has been populated since prehistoric times as illustrated by the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic remains found at Positano. While it became a Roman colony in the 4th century, the region has been intensively settled since the beginning of Middle Ages.
On the southern side of the peninsula, a natural border is formed by Lattari Mountains which extends from peaks of Picentini Mountains as far as Tyrrhenian Sea, dividing the Gulf of Naples from the Gulf of Salerno. It is composed by four main coastal areas (Amalfi, Atrani, Reginna Maior, and Reginna Minor) and some secondary areas (Positano, Praiano, Cetaria, and Hercle), with the characteristic villages of Scala, Tramonti and Ravello, and the hamlets of Conca and Furore. Several of these historical centres, flourished during the period of the great power hold by the Amalfi Sea Republic and, as a result, contain numerous artistic and architectural masterpieces, some of which are the result of the fusion of eastern and western elements known as “Arabic-Norman” style. Agricultural areas are witness to the capacity of its inhabitants to adapt, in the best way, to the different types of land. They developed terrace cultivation for vineyards and fruit gardens in the bottom area and practiced sheep-farming in the upper area.