Located in front of the hamlet of Sant’Elpidio, just below the provincial road to Montelparo and Monteleone, the spring is steeped in a story that weaves together miracle and folk tradition. According to legend, St. Emidio, patron saint of Ascoli Piceno, stopped here on his way to Fermo, accompanied by his followers. During a hot summer, he is said to have caused these waters to gush forth through prayer—waters that proved both thirst-quenching and curative. The origin of the spring is ancient and may be linked to the Farfensi monks, who in 1259 owned the nearby sacred building, where they had founded a monastery. The spring is mentioned in documents from the late 17th century and later by the Ascoli historian Giuseppe Colucci in his “Antichità Picene,” as well as in Paolo Antonio Appiani’s “Vita di Sant’Emidio.” Used until after World War II, the spring and its fountain have been restored several times, losing some of their original features. Nevertheless, they still retain the hydraulic structure and the stone mask through which water flows into the basin below, protected by a barrel vault.
