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Catanzaro Province
Were Italy actually a heeled boot, the province of
Catanzaro would be located right at the highest point
of the instep with the Ionian Sea.
There are about 370,000 people living in what are 80,
mostly small, towns.
The largest city in the province, the namesake Catanzaro
is actually the capital of the entire Calabria region.
The city of Catanzaro was actually built in a few different
places, the “old” town being a Byzantine village constructed
in the 9th and 10th centuries.
Before that, the region, though mountainous, served
as an agricultural province for ancient Rome.
In more recent times the city has supplied the Vatican
with silk and lace for hundreds of years.
There is a tall plateau and mountain range called the
Sila Mountains that is used as a park and for the cultivation
of arid-adapted agricultural crops, such as prickly
pear cactus. The area is mountainous and geologically
active, with the entire province having been devastated
by major earthquakes in the 18th and 19th centuries.
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