San Valentino, in Sardinia, is known as “su santu coiadori”, ‘the saint who gets married’. The only church on the island named after the patron saint of sweethearts is in Sadali, a delightful town of medieval origin and mixed farming traditions in the Barbagia di Seulo region.
The magnificent Cascata di San Valentino is also dedicated to the saint. It can be found in the old town centre which is the only one in Sardinia that can boast rapids running through its residential area.
The waterfall is replenished by the Funtana Manna spring and is active throughout the year. The water drops around seven metres over a rocky crag covered in moss and other aquatic plants. The flow ends, like that of the innumerable springs in the town, in the “Sa Ucca Manna“, an underground ravine with a stone pathway which provides access to visitors.
Devotion to the saint stems from a local legend. A long time ago, a wandering vagrant stopped off in Sadali in front of a waterfall. The traveller had a figurine of the saint with him. When he started off on his walk again, despite his efforts, he could no longer move the statue from the spot where he’d placed it. So, the local inhabitants decided to jealously safeguard the simulacrum and built a ‘temple’ to San Valentino. The town celebrates its patron saint three times a year: the ‘classic’ 14 February, the 8 May and the 6 October. The charming waterfall seems to have been deliberately designed to be visited on the most romantic day of the year and is a pilgrim destination for those asking favour of the saint to find them a partner.
During the feudal era, the force of the water was used to operate the mills. One of these can still be seen at the side of the waterfall drop. The town of Sadali is one of “Italy’s most beautiful towns” and is a stop-off point on the Trenino Verde route.
