At 1020 m above sea level (3060 ft) surrounded by beech trees and splendid forests on the side of Mt Cammoro not far from the villages of Pettino and Orsano, there is a small sanctuary dedicated to St. Paterniano. Tradition holds that the saint, bishop of Fano, stopped over here to live briefly as a hermit on one of his trips to Rome. It seems he appeared often in this area until his request to build a worship site was finally granted.
The small Romanesque style church has a very plain gabled façade; there are two lateral windows and one over the door. A portico covers the entrance and there is a holy stone to the right known as the inginocchiatoio del santo (where the saint kneeled); in fact, the stone is worn smooth and bears the signs of the hermit saint’s knees and staff. Today the devout kneel in the same position for the purpose of praying for a favor and healing of diseases of the bones.
Behind the little chapel is a small ‘cell’ or room that was furnished as a refuge for people of the Church or laymen hermits in the early 1900s.
The entire structure has been restored recently and today it is the destination of numerous devout pilgrims who come every year to pay homage to the saint on the day when he is remembered – July 10th.
The faithful meet in the lower valley for a Mass then walk to the hermitage in procession. There is a fresh mountain spring nearby named after St Paterniano whose water, according to tradition, has therapeutic properties.