Copanello or Copanello de Stalettì is a frazione (a hamlet, in Italy) of the municipality of Stalettì in the province of Catanzaro. It's a seaside resort on the Ionian coast nicknamed la perla dello Jonio catanzarese, i.e. the Pearl of the Ionian Sea of Catanzaro. It is bounded to the north by the Alessi river and to the south by the Lamia torrent. Copanello itself is divided into two hamlets: Copanello Alto and Copanello Lido.
In the 14th century, Copanello was part of the estate of the Latin politician and writer Cassiodorus (485–580). Around 555, he built the Vivarium monastery (now in Copanello Alto) and the Chapel of San Martino. Under the name of Coscia, it was a dependency of the town of Squillace until the early 19th century, when it became part of the municipality of Stalettì.
From the 17th to the 19th century, Copanello belonged to the Pepe family, before becoming the property of various Italian patriots (Guglielmo Pepe, Enrico Cosenz, Damiano Assanti, Francesco Carrano, Girolamo Calà Ulloa and Camillo Boldoni), who sold it to Baron Scoppa. The territory of Copanello Lido was then inherited by the Lucifero family, whose last owner was Francesco Lucifero, while that of Copanello Alto was sold to Achille Fazzari, then to the Falcone family and finally to the Gatti family.
The first house on Copanello Lido was built in 1954, and the Villagio Guglielmo Vacation Village was inaugurated in 1969.
In 1957, Giovanni Gatti opened the Motel Copanello in Copanello Alto. From the mid-1960s onwards, Copanello was home to celebrities such as Frank Sinatra, Renato Rascel, Totò, Bobby Solo, Rita Pavone, Gloria Gaynor, Gino Paoli, Raf Vallone and Peppino di Capri.
Toponymy
Until the mid-19th century, the western part of Copanello Lido was occupied by the Casino Pepe estate, while Copanello Alto and the Copanello Lido coastline were known as La Coscia (due to their proximity to the Coscia de Stalettì mountain range, at the foot of which Copanello Lido was situated and on which Copanello Alto was built). La Coscia territory was located in the Marina de Squillace. The name Copanello only appeared in the early 20th century, replacing La Coscia.
Geography
Location
Copanello lies at the eastern end of the isthmus of Catanzaro, in the center of the Gulf of Squillace, in the area known as Costa dei Aranci (Orange Coast) or Costa dei Saraceni (Saracen Coast). The locality's northern boundary with Squillace Lido (a frazione of the municipality of Squillace) is the River Alessi, whose mouth is near the Hotel Club Poséidon, in Copanello Lido. Copanello's southern boundary with Santa Maria del Mare (frazione of the commune of Stalettì) is the Lamia torrent. To the southwest, it borders the village of Stalettì, while to the west, it borders the municipality of Squillace.
Copanello Lido lies on the coast of the Gulf of Squillace, almost at sea level, at the foot of the Coscia di Stalettì or Coscia de Squillace (a Calabrian mountain also known as Mons Moscius in the time of Cassiodorus and later as Coscia della baronessa), while Copanello Alto lies on the Coscia di Stalettì, overlooking the Gulf of Squillace at around 100 m above sea level.
Hydrography
The River Alessi (known as Amnis Pellena in the 17th century) rises in the center of the isthmus of Catanzaro, in the municipality of Girifalco, at the foot of Mount Covello, part of the Serre Calabresi. It then flows through the municipality of Vallefiorita and on to the old town of Squillace, where it flows around the promontory before joining the Ghetterello to the south of the town. The torrent then crosses the northern part of the municipality of Stalettì before emptying into the Ionian Sea in the Gulf of Squillace. Its mouth forms the boundary between the frazione of Copanello, in the commune of Stalettì, and the frazione of Squillace Lido, in the commune of Squillace. It was here that Ulysses is said to have met Nausicaa on his voyage to the land of the Phaeacians. The Alessi torrent runs for a total of 18 kilometers from its source to its mouth. In addition to the Alessi river, two other torrents run through Copanello Lido. These are the Fosso della Coscia (a tributary of the Alessi that flows between Villagio Guglielmo and the Guglielmo Caffè roasting plant) and the Fosso Gullà (a tributary of the Alessi that flows north of Casino Pepe). The Fosso della Coscia rises north of the town of Stalettì, while the Fosso Gullà begins in the area between the Casino Pepe and the town of Stalettì.
Climate
Fire risk
Fires are fairly frequent in the Coscia de Stalettì area between Copanello and the village of Stalettì.