Sonia Santoro

The *masciàre* were healers and herbalists, keepers of knowledge passed down orally through generations. On nights of the full moon, using ointments and potions, they transformed into dogs, cats, or birds to travel undisturbed to their gatherings. Each coven met beneath the nearest walnut tree. The most majestic of all stood in Benevento. During the Inquisition, these trees were uprooted and replaced with churches, in an attempt to erase the memory they held. Yet in Puglia, near the town of Noci, a young walnut tree now grows lush and strong beside one of these ancient churches.