Grotta dell'Annunziata in Minori

This large natural cavity opens near the sea, along the Amalfi Coast road, on the border with Maiori. According to tradition it was discovered after the earthquake of 3 January 1117. In the 14th century a small rock church was created inside it, dedicated to Santa Maria de Crypta and later to the Virgin of the Annunciation, with a small hospital for the sick next to it.A 17th-century storm destroyed the buildings, which were already in ruins by the 18th century. A few limestone walls and an arched structure remain; a 15th-century fresco of the so-called Fishermen's Madonna could once be seen too. The cave is only partly accessible: we like to stop and look at it from the road.