Positano is a village and comune on the Amalfi Coast (Costiera Amalfitana), in Campania, Italy. The main part of the city sits in an enclave in the hills leading down to the coast.
Positano was a port of the Amalfi Republic
in medieval times, and prospered during the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries. By the mid-nineteenth century, however, the town had fallen
on hard times. More than half the population emigrated, mostly to Australia.
Positano was a relatively poor fishing village during the first half
of the twentieth century. It began to attract large numbers of tourists
in the 1950s, especially after John Steinbeck published his essay about Positano in Harper's Bazaar
in May, 1953: "Positano bites deep", Steinbeck wrote. "It is a dream
place that isn’t quite real when you are there and becomes beckoningly
real after you have gone."
The church of Santa Maria Assunta features a dome made of majolica tiles as well as a thirteenth century Byzantine icon of a black Madonna. According to local legend, the icon had been stolen from Byzantium
and was being transported by pirates across the Mediterranean. A
terrible storm had blown up in the waters opposite Positano and the
frightened sailors heard a voice on board saying "Posa, posa!" ("Put
down! Put down!"). The precious icon was unloaded and carried to the
fishing village and the storm abated.
Positano has been featured in several films, including Only You (1994), and Under the Tuscan Sun (2003), as well as being mentioned in the 2009 musical film Nine
in the song "Cinema Italiano". Positano is also the setting for the
romantic adventure novel, "Finding Positano, A Love Story" (2010), by
William James. It also hosts the annual Cartoons on the Bay Festival, at which Pulcinella awards for excellence in animation are presented.
From July 1967 and through most of the 1970s, Positano was home of singer-songwriter Shawn Phillips and was where most of his best known work was composed. Also, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards from The Rolling Stones wrote the song "Midnight Rambler" in the cafes of Positano while on vacation.
Today tourism is by far the major industry in Positano. Positano is also very popular for Limoncello and for "L'Albertissimo", an alcoholic tipple that can only be found at a small stall at the main harbour.
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