At the end of the 19th century, the cave became the host of a small village, where the Mangiapane family settled down to live on what the nature had to offer, and by the work of the people who lived there.

There were those who took care of animals and those who cultivated the land. Someone went hunting while others built houses and made tools for the community.

The Grotta (also known as La Grotta degli Uffizi) became a place where harmony and simplicity, combined with the need to share everything, found fertile ground, until it was almost completely abandoned after the Second World War.

Since 1982, some residents of Custonaci have decided to give it a new lease of life with the idea of recreating the story of the Nativity, where the actors portrayed the villagers and the way of life they led when the Mangiapane family lived in the cave.

The visitors will be able to feel the rustic charm of the place, appreciating the typical housing structure, and see the tools which are no longer in use but were essential at that time.