The Ghost of Beatrice Cenci
A scary story
By Claudia

In Rome, there is a very famous building called Castel Sant' Angelo.  It was built beside the River Tiber (Il Tevere)
around the year 134 AD by the Emperor Hadrian.
In Italian he is known as L'Imperatore Adriano.  

Castel Sant' Angelo.  Photo by Andreas Tille.

A bridge crossing the River Tiber takes you to the Castel Sant' Angelo.  It is called 'The Bridge of Angels' because there are ten statues of angels standing on the sides of the bridge.

 
Photos of the Bridge of Angels, known as Il Ponte Sant'Angelo.
Top right photo by Andreas Tille.

In the year 1599, a beautiful girl was accused of being involved in a plot.  She was held prisoner in the Castel Sant' Angelo and then, on the 11th. September, she was executed with other members of her family in the square (la piazza) beside the Bridge of Angels.
  She was from a noble and wealthy Roman family and her name was Beatrice Cenci.

(Portrait of Beatrice Cenci by artist Guido Reni.)

The people of Rome believe that, every year on the nights of the 10th. and 11th. September, on the anniversary of her death, the ghost of Beatrice walks across the Bridge of Angels.

'I dare you to walk across the bridge in the dark,' said my big sister on the 10th. of September last year. 

'Non c' è problema!' 'No problem!' I replied bravely.

There was a full moon that night.  Long, black shadows of winged angels lay across the pavement of the bridge.  Illuminated clouds hovered in the sky.  The dark water of the River Tiber lurked below.

'Io non ho paura!'  'I'm not scared!'  I informed my sister.

Secretly, my heart was thudding with fear but I didn't admit it because I wanted my big, scaredy-cat sister to admire my bravery.

'In bocca al lupo!'  'Good luck!' she said, as I set off.

There was nobody else on the bridge.  It was just me, the angel statues and a possible ghost.

As I walked past the statue of an angel, it seemed to be watching me. 


One of the tall angel statues.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps! 

Mamma mia!  This is it!  The ghost of Beatrice is going to appear!  What will she look like?  Will she be a white shadow?  Will she be smiling and friendly?  Or will she be scary?  Will she speak to me?  Perhaps she will ask to be my special friend!

The ghostly footsteps were coming nearer.  I could hear them behind me.  I carried on walking.  I was too terrified to look behind.  Also, the angel statues seemed really frightening now.

'Io non ho paura!' I kept telling myself.

At that moment, an icy hand touched my shoulder.  It gripped me tightly.  I stopped.  'This really is it!' I thought. 
'Beatrice is here!'

Slowly, I turned around.  My whole body was trembling.  I prepared myself.

'Bu!' 

I opened my eyes to see my big sister's silly face.

Actually, I was really pleased to see her. 

'Let's run back!' I suggested.  So, we ran as fast as we could, back to the start of the bridge.  We were very glad to see Mamma and Papà.

I would like to take this opportunity to give some advice to anyone who wishes to walk across the bridge on the nights of the 10th. or 11th. September:-

1.  Do not look at the statues.  In the dark, they are really scary.
2.   Do not go alone. 
3.  If you see Beatrice, be kind to her because she will probably want to be your friend.
4.  Make sure that you are a fast runner. 

La Fine.

To visit Claudia's Italian Adventures Page, click HERE.