Not only nature and sport: the legends linked to the Matterhorn

Mount Cervino is a peak located in the western part of the Alps, on the border with Switzerland. It is a 4478 meters high mountain, one of the highest in Italy. Its naturalistic beauty and its charm have always been tourist attractions for those who love the mountains, winter sports and unspoiled nature. However, there are also many legends surrounding this mountain massif. Three are the most famous and particular: - the first relates to the birth of the mountain. In fact, it seems that the giant Gargantua, after a party in which he had drunk too much, decided to climb a nearby mountain but his weight caused the rock to collapse. The mountainous remains left standing between his legs, gave life to the Matterhorn. - the town of Breuil-Cervinia is located at the foot of the mountain and it seems that Ostessa lived here, the owner of an inn where she used to cheat customers by serving watered down wine. After her death she was punished by the gods and forced to climb the glacier every night to divide the water from the wine. - the third legend concerns the birth of the blue lake, a body of water not far from the mountain. It is said that in the place of the lake there was the house of a family of shepherds who were awakened in a rainy night by a traveler looking for something to eat. The woman denied him help but the son offered the man his portion of milk. The parents prevented the child from doing this by chasing the traveler away after giving him a bowl of dirty water. The little boy was even punished and forced to go for wood in the woods, but when he returned he could no longer find the house and in its place was the lake. Next door the boy decided to build his house and prospered generously together with the woman and the family he built. It is said that it is still possible to see the remains of the house destroyed by divine punishment in the lake.