Located in the lower Salento, 62 km from the provincial capital and 8.5 km from the Ionian Sea, it was part of the municipalities belonging to the so-called region of the Salento greenhouses. It adheres to the National Oil City Association and is also known as the “City of the Hypogea”, due to the presence of numerous underground oil mills. In addition, from 2011 it became part of the association “The most beautiful villages in Italy”.

In Presicce, City of Oil and City of Hypogea, everything revolves around the yellow gold, to which a party is dedicated.

The underground mills to visit are those in piazza del Popolo, vico Sant’Anna and via Gramsci. In addition to the monuments, in the historic center you have to see “li vecchio curti”, the courtyard houses in the Corciuli and Padreterno districts. The main ones are located in via E. Arditi, in vico Matteotti (1581), in vico Sant’Anna and in via Anita Garibaldi.

On a height of the Pozzomauro greenhouse there is a small rural church with a gabled facade of the Madonna di Loreto, of Basilian origin.

Behind the church, a Byzantine crypt has been transformed into an underground oil mill.

The countryside around Presicce shows immense expanses of olive trees and farms (courtyards where several families once lived, under the rule of a feudal lord), some fortified following the Saracen and Turkish invasions, such as the La Casarana, Del Feudo and Tunna farms, all sixteenth century.

The inhabited center is located in a valley particularly rich in water. It is dominated by the Serra salentina of Pozzomauro, a hill organized in terraces and dry stone walls along the slopes and covered with Mediterranean scrub, expanses of ancient olive groves and vineyards photo by Quaserta

The masseria de lu Peshcu is from the seventeenth century and the Monaci is from the nineteenth century.

In the eighteenth century the country villas of the landowners, called “casine”, like Casina degli Angeli (1778) and Casina Celle.

Let’s start our virtual tour in this treasure of Puglia!

Palazzo Ducale

Palazzo Ducale is also called Palazzo Paternò, and originates from a rearrangement which in the sixteenth century involved an older palace. The oldest information about the building is from the Norman era, but a first castrum was built to defend the first housing units, probably in the Byzantine era.

The current Palazzo Ducale, therefore, incorporates the testimonies of over a thousand years of history. The building has a massive structure, linear elevations marked and lightened by the corner solutions, the elegant Renaissance-style architraved windows, the large loggia, consisting of three richly decorated round arches. The roofs of the internal rooms are generally barrel-vaulted and with a corner, a large staircase has a wooden trussed roof.

Four main building phases can be identified. The first relates to the medieval fort; still visible along the western perimeter there is one of the corner towers, the presence of a deep moat is also documented. The second phase of development takes place between the 16th and 17th centuries, under the dominion of the Gonzaga, of the Cito-Moles and of the Bartilotti-Piccolomini of Aragon.

In 1630 a renovation of the castle was started, softening the rough volumes of the fort, with the large loggia of the western perimeter, with the hanging gardens, built on the embankment of the walls of the southern perimeter and building a new chapel dedicated to the Santissima Annunziata which overlooking the public square.

The rich sculptural decoration of the facade of the chapel also affects the interior, in fact the intrados of the vault is marked by shutters, ribs and apotropaic masks, on the only altar of the sacred building there is a large altarpiece depicting the Annunciation. The third phase which brought further changes took place in the XVIII century.

In 1709, the palace passed to the de ‘Liguoro family and in 1791 the renovation of the courtyard of the palace was started, creating the elegant baroque wing and the double ramp staircase leading to the main floor. Access was also opened, through a portal, to the hanging gardens from Piazza Sant’Andrea (now Piazza Villani). The fourth phase of renovation involved the external elevations of the building. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Duke Paternò decided to place the battlements with a neo-Gothic taste, according to the eclectic fashion of the time and new buildings were added.

Since 1990 it has housed the Museum of Rural Life.

Chiesa del Carmine

The Carmine church, recently restored, was built between 1694 and 1695 and has an altar carved in Lecce stone in a late Baroque style. It has bas-reliefs, carved columns, and tracery.

The Church has a late Baroque altar, carved in Lecce stone with columns rich in carvings, tracery, bas-reliefs.

The bell tower was built in 1951 and replaced the old bell tower, knocked down by lightning.

The Chiesa del Carmine, with the adjoining convent of the Carmelite Fathers dedicated to St. John the Baptist, was built in Presicce in the second half of the 16th century, following a donation by a citizen to the Carmelites of Lecce. The church is of remarkable artistic interest, with the high altar in Lecce stone finely sculpted with twisted columns rich in carvings, bas-reliefs and statues and which still features the wooden choir and pulpit.

The convent, suppressed for the first time in 1652, hosted the friars until 1809, the year in which it was definitively suppressed and forfeited by the state. Subsequently ceded to the municipal administration, in 1883 it underwent a first restructuring necessary to adapt it to host the town hall, the magistrate’s office, the school and the prisons. A second renovation was then carried out between 1930 and 1935.

The convent, which now houses the municipal police command, the municipal library and is intended for socio-cultural activities, has undergone several changes over time and at some point it has been necessary to carry out an intervention of requalification and energy efficiency (official name: “Redevelopment and energy efficiency of the municipal building of the former Convent of the Carmelite Fathers San Giovanni Battista”).

Among the various actions and processes envisaged, insulation was carried out on the envelope, increasing the thermal efficiency of the walls, thanks to the use of thermal plaster, remaking the roofing package with new screeds and insulating layers and repositioning the original coating, creating crawl spaces, installing high efficiency systems, in particular using geothermal energy.

Ancient underground oil mills

The hypogean trappeti are ancient oil mills that, in the Salento area, were used to produce oil. In the municipality of Presicce there is the largest number of these underground areas excavated in calcanerite between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries.

They represent an interesting testimony of peasant life, fascinating both as structures and for the historical significance they contain.

Guests of the Panoramico Hotel can admire them and appreciate their value with a short journey of about 35 minutes by car. This is the time it takes to travel the approximately 23 km that separate the municipality of Presicce from Castro Marina.

Fans of ancient historical evidence find in Salento a real treasure chest to discover. Among many, Presicce offers a particular attraction, a symbol of peasant fatigue and the ability of the population to use the characteristics of the area for their needs.

For the peasant communities settled in the Salento countryside, olives, and the oil obtained from them, were and are a precious commodity.

In the historic center of the small village in the lower Salento there are several underground oil mills.

The country is also known as the “city of the hypogea” for the large number of underground environments found on its territory.

The many trappeti, underground oil mills, make it clear how flourishing the local economy was based on agriculture and the cultivation of olive trees in particular.

In Presicce the ancient oil mills are located under Piazza del Popolo, in front of the main church and under many of the most important streets. Some of them worked until the last century, with the presses and grinding wheels of the “Calabrese” type which obtained the purest and most natural extra virgin olive oil from olives.

Later they were gradually abandoned to use more modern machinery and technologies. Some of them were filled with soil and forgotten.

Today you are enchanted in seeing these historical places, living and suggestive testimonies of the life of the past.

Presicce has the luck and merit of having rediscovered them and being able to offer them as moments of life lived to those who want to visit them.

The Hotel Panoramico offers the ideal base for getting around the Salento in search of ancient emotions.

The underground crushers are found in the calcarenitic rock for several reasons.

Mother Church of Sant’Andrea Apostolo

The Matrix church named after the patron saint of Presicce, considered one of the most beautiful in the diocese of Ugento, has a Latin cross plan.

The single nave, decorated with eight side altars embellished with stucco decorations and paintings on canvas, ends with a grandiose polychrome marble altar.

Also in marble are the balustrade, the baptistery and the holy water fonts, the latter being the gift of King Francesco I of Bourbon as a manifestation of esteem for the presiccese Michele Arditi, who from 1807 was general director of the Museum of Naples.

Inside there are valuable eighteenth-century wooden statues of the Neapolitan school including those of S. Andrea and S. Vito. Among the paintings on canvas, the work of local authors, the large painting attributed to Catalan, where the Martyrdom of the patron Saint (St. Andrew) stands out, and, in counter-façade, the painting of the Transport of the Ark of the Covenant, attributed to Oronzo Tiso which recalls that preserved in the choir of the church of the Theatines in Lecce.

The paintings depicting the Last Supper, the Nativity, the Adoration of the Magi, Christ and the Samaritan woman are also attributed to Tiso. Del Pesco are The Sacrifice of Isaac, the Sacrifice of Jephthah, Moses saved from the waters, Moses and the tables of the law.

Finally, some paintings from the altars, including L ‘Assunta and La Madonna del Rosario, can be linked to the painter Rachele Lillo or her workshop. The architect and executor of the work was Saverio Negro.

Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli

The church of Santa Maria degli Angeli, with the adjoining convent of the Reformed Fathers, is located outside the city center, on the site where the medieval town of Pozzo Magno (or Pozzomauro) stood, destroyed by the Saracens in the 15th century. The current church was built on the site of an ancient sacred building dating from the XII-XIII century. According to tradition, the construction of the new church is linked to two prodigious events that took place in 1596; in the presence of an image of the Virgin inviting a farmer to be a spokesman for the reconstruction of the building and the healing of a blind man. In 1598, on a project by the baron of Presicce Filippo De Cito who was also an architect, the rebuilding of the church began. In 1603, with the installation of the Reformed Fathers, the convent was built from scratch.

The church, with a Latin cross plan (i.e. T) with a single nave, has a roof with cross vaults crossed by ribs in festoons and richly decorated with eighteenth-century stuccos. Eight altars dedicated to the Nativity, the Adoration of the Magi, asant’Oronzo and San Pasquale Baylon on the right side are attached along the walls of the nave; the Deposition of Jesus, the Madonna of Constantinople, the Crucifix and San Gerolamo on the left side.

In the transept there are the oldest frescoes of the church, an evident sign of the remains of the ancient structure. These are pictorial works of Byzantine style dating from the XII and XIV centuries and which depict a saint with a beard, a Madonna and Child and other figures that are difficult to understand. Still in the transept, among seventeenth-century paintings, there is the image of another Madonna and Child of the fifteenth century which is the image of the miraculous event.

The main altar leads to two doors that lead to the choir and where you can see the walled doors that put the sacred building in communication with the convent. The convent is distributed around the cloister with a central well which has some wall paintings of the Franciscan school.

On the ground floor is the refectory and the rooms necessary for the activities of the friars; on the upper floor, along the corridor, the monks’ cells and other rooms overlook. Suppressed in 1866, the convent complex fell into a profound abandonment and was subject to numerous thefts.

Addolorata Church

The Addolorata church emerges from the ridge of the hill west of Presicce on a ridge of rock formations cut to make room for the base of the building itself. The chapel has an enviable panoramic position and looks at the valley below in which the inhabited center of Presicce is located. Giacomo Arditi compares the church of the Addolorata to a sentinel who looks at and guards his native town from above.

The intent and will of the Presiccesi to build a chapel to the Blessed Virgin of Sorrows at the expense of the University and the citizens date back to the early 1700s., sometimes less for the construction of the future church of the Sorrows. Among the legacies of the Presiccesi we want to remember that in 1710 the fellow notary Leonardo Paiano roga the testament of the Priest Oronzo Cicco in which it reads: “… item (moreover) I leave to Madonna dei Dolori, when it will be manufactured, all the priestly clothes with the chalice to be kept in said church. “For about 30 years the desire to build this church remained only in the list of good intentions of the Presiccesi.

Not having a patron who could give substantial help to the construction of the building, the construction of the church was able to begin only in the first months of 1739. By the end of 1740, however, its construction was already completed, in fact in this year’s document we meet the name of the oblate (custodian) of the chapel: Gregorio Trotta aged 65. The religious sentiment of the inhabitants of Presicce of the early eighteenth century found the synthesis in the construction of the church of the Addolorata and in the foundation of the Confraternity of “Sa nta Maria dei Sette Dolori “which had its seat in the same chapel.

The Confraternita dell’Addolorata was added to the confraternities that already existed in Presicce in 1700: that of the Sacrament, the Rosary and the Assumption. The Cappella dell’Addolorata had no ecclesiastical benefits either in land or in census capitals. In the Catastuolo of 1742 it is documented that “The venerable universal chapel (of the University) of the Sorrows holds only a small garden that serves for the use of the oblate that serves the Virgin and does not bring any income.

It borders on every state with the state property and is attached to the Chapel”. The building, having been built on the ridge of the hill, had a facade with a significant difference in height from the walking surface, so it was necessary to build a staircase to reach the entrance door of the church.

In 1766, the steps were run down because they were badly made and the Presiccesi gathered in public Parliament decided to “do the steps in front of the Madonna dei Sette Dolori again for greater convenience of the natives (citizens) of this Earth”. The chapel, having been built with public money, was of a “lay” nature; the University therefore had the right to appoint the “procurator”, as well as the prior of the confraternity and the other administrators.

The post A guide to Presicce, the magical medieval village of the Hypogea appeared first on bellaromedev.

Like a pearl set in a jewel, as simple as it is beautiful, precious and elegant, Borgio Verezzi nestles along the Riviera delle Palme between Finale and Pietra Ligure, in a game of shapes, colors and shades that enchants the most attentive and demanding. It is no coincidence that this picturesque town between sea, rock and Mediterranean scents has been included in the circuit of the Pearls of Liguria. And it is no coincidence that it is also included in that of the most Italian villages. Whether you travel alone, with family or with friends Borgio Verezzi knows how to charm and conquer. But it is when traveling as a couple that you experience the most exciting sensations.

Borgio Verezzi is among the most romantic Ligurian villages consisting of four villages – Poggio, Piazza, Roccaro and Crosa – populated by small pink stone houses. Overlooking the sea, they climb the hill connected to each other by ancient mule tracks (le crêuze) that cross gardens, ancient doors, wash houses, votive shrines. Much loved by walkers and climbers, many arrive in the village also to see its caves.

Along each alleyway and crêuze that connect the villages, suggestive glimpses of narrow passages open, ancient doors, wash-houses, votive niches, corners rich in history and beauty that refer to past eras: all inserted in the harsh natural context and pleasant of the terraces. However, the most striking aspect in Verezzi is the view of the Ligurian coast that can be enjoyed from each of the four villages where it really seems to be suspended between sky and sea. The village, inserted in the Pollupice Mountain Community, which is based in Finale Ligure, participates in the initiative The road of wine and oil, which aims to enhance the food and wine traditions and typical products of the area.

Let’s start our tour in this wonderful gem of Liguria!

Caves of Borgio Verezzi

The Caves of Borgio Verezzi were discovered only in 1933, but the presence of cavities was well known for a long time to the inhabitants of the place, as well as some strange phenomena connected to them. For example, the waters of the Rio Battorezza seemed to be swallowed up in different parts of its course, even if this did not prevent the stream from periodically leaving the riverbed to devastate the surrounding fields. Then there was the lake, at the bottom of the almost mythical cave which can be accessed from the floor of the church of S. Pietro, and finally the Roggetto: a stream that flows from a fracture, right at the foot of the town of Borgio.

Towards the end of the 1920s, the Podestà Giacomo Staricco decided that the floods of the Battorezza had already done too much damage: he decided to dig in the stream bed, widening the fractures in which the water sometimes seemed to infiltrate, hoping to intercept a pipeline underground that served as an outlet for too ruinous floods. A well about ten meters deep was dug, but we had to stop because the money available had run out.

At the beginning of the 1930s, yet another flood completes the work. The water that has penetrated the well manages to break through a thin rock diaphragm and disappears underground.

Following the water route, in 1933, three young children from Borgio entered the first room of a new cave, where they wrote the date and their names with the smoke of candles: Lillo, Tito and Valentino.

Nobody realizes the extent of the discovery until 1951, the year in which Giovanni Dentella, at the head of the Speleological Group Ingauno, begins the systematic exploration of the cave, finding a complex of rooms and galleries that winds for a few kilometers below the town of Borgio. Dentella himself, impressed by the extraordinary beauty of that underground world, will conceive and implement the tourist route inaugurated in 1970.

The still and transparent waters of the lakes constitute one of the major attractions of the tourist route, which winds for about 800 meters inside large halls, between huge blocks detached from the vault in remote ages. The concretions of every shape are very rich: from the cannulas, thin and almost transparent, to the drapes, as thin as sheets, to the large columns that seem to support the vault up to the eccentric stalactites, which challenge the force of gravity developing in all directions.

And everywhere the colors: white, yellow, red in a thousand different shades. Due to the presence of various minerals, they make the Caves of Borgio Verezzi the most colorful tourist cave in Italy.

Gavone Castel

Castel Gavone was the main seat of the Marquis Del Carretto, lords of Finale. It is located in today’s hamlet of Perti in Finale Ligure, in the province of Savona.

At the end of the XII century (most likely starting from 1172) Enrico I Del Carretto or his son Enrico II established a “caminata”, that is a feudal palace, above the Becchignolo hill, the rocky outcrop that dominates Finalborgo, the capital of the marquisate; it was enlarged and fortified by Henry II in 1217. It was partially demolished in 1448 by the Republic of Genoa and immediately rebuilt by Giovanni I Del Carretto between 1451 and 1452.

During the following century the castle was further enlarged by Alfonso I Del Carretto, his son Giovanni II and his grandson Alfonso II. The project of these extensions is a typical example of the so-called “transition military architecture” and seems inspired by Francesco di Giorgio, with whom Alfonso should have had occasion to meet in Rome and perhaps in Milan. The first intervention was the addition of a triangular building culminating in the “Torre dei Diamanti” (around 1490), a tower in the shape of a ship’s hull and covered by a splendid ashlar. The new body was used to defend the castle from artillery attacks from the side of the slope that descends towards the sea.

Shortly thereafter, in the second or third decade of the sixteenth century, the construction of an external rectangular wall began, the construction of which was completed in the last years of Carretto domination (before 1558).

Further external works, but aimed at the security of the castle, were carried out under Spanish rule. The main intervention was the construction in 1643 of Castel San Giovanni, which protects the slope below Castel Gavone, preventing the installation of enemy artillery.

The last major intervention, the work of Gaspare Beretta in 1674, was the excavation of a rocky slope on the northern side, always to prevent the attackers from being fortified. Simultaneously, a crosspiece, a point and a covered road were built at the base of the outer wall to prevent the approach of enemy engineers.

The castle was again demolished by Genoese artificers in 1715 after the purchase of the Marquisate by the Republic of Genoa.

On 29 December 1989, the castle was donated to the Municipality of Finale Ligure, and after the restoration started in 2007, it is finally possible to visit this splendid complex.

The Cave of the Arene Candide

The Cave of the Arene Candide is one of the most important caves in Europe for the famous finds made inside it.

Inside this cave, finds have been found that testify to the presence of man between the upper Paleolithic period and the Byzantine age; these important findings make this cave one of the most important in Europe thanks to the remains preserved in it. The history of this cave begins about 30,000 years ago even though it was discovered much more recently, more or less 150 years ago, and the archaeological research inside has not yet stopped.

The Cave of the Arene Candide is located 89 meters above sea level, in the Caprazoppa promontory that divides Finale Ligure from Borgio Verezzi. The name derives from the now disappeared quartz white sand dune, which until about 1920 reached the shores of the sea.

In the Paleolithic period, the cavity was the site of several important burials, among which we remember that of a young hunter who lived 28,000 years ago: many objects and rich ornaments were placed with his body, so as to give him the nickname of “young man” prince”; this finding is undoubtedly one of the most important in all of Europe.

The most numerous remains were attributed instead to the Neolithic period, between 5800 and 3600 BC. Most likely, the first farmers who came from the sea settled in the cave and found a safe and favourable place to settle here.

Thanks to the research carried out over the years in the Cave od the Arene Candide, much has been discovered about the culture, habits, conditions and standard of living of the populations that lived in the Finale area in the Neolithic period. Not only that, these studies have made it possible to understand and deepen information about the economy, resource management and the relationship with the environment. From this point of view, the prehistoric site has been an important source of news that has no equal in the whole Mediterranean.

The international importance of the Caene delle Arene Candide derives from the fact that inside it there is a sequence of about 10 meters of sediments which contain imposing traces of human frequentation between the Upper Paleolithic (about 34 thousand years ago) and the VI-VII century AD: it is still the most complex and complete archaeological stratigraphy of the western Mediterranean. Most of the layers are linked to the presence of prehistoric man: burials, fragments of vases, shells, bones, wooden coals, accumulations of manure, ashes, characterize large areas of the cave.

Church of San Pietro

The church of San Pietro is a Catholic place of worship located in the hamlet of Borgio, in Piazza San Pietro, in the municipality of Borgio Verezzi in the province of Savona. The church is the seat of the homonymous parish of the pastoral area of ​​Pietra Ligure of the diocese of Albenga-Imperia.

Built in 1789 on the area where the ancient sixteenth-century defensive castle stood, the parish church of San Pietro was completed in 1806 and is characterized by a white neoclassical structure and the two bell towers on the sides of the main facade.

The church was built in 1789 on the remains of the ancient castle of the Burgum Albinganeum – designed by Giacomo Barella – with the completion of the works in a period between 1806 and 1808.

It assumed the title of parish church from the already existing church of Santo Stefano – originally dedicated to San Pietro and now a sanctuary – located inside the local cemetery.

A few years later – in 1814 – the church was visited by Pope Pius VII during the return from French captivity.

The church has a single nave, with six side chapels; the facade is neoclassical, with the main door flanked by four Corinthian columns. Among the works preserved, a canvas depicting Saint Peter in the apse area.

Phoenician mill

The Phoenician mill of Verezzi, so defined for the Phoenician and Middle Eastern influences that characterize its construction technique, represents the best preserved example of the three currently present in Europe, one of which in Spain and one in Sicily, both in ruins. In this type of windmill, the blades were located inside the structure and moved thanks to the wind that passed through the open slits on the facade.

The windows were closed or opened according to the wind and needs, in order to convey the flow with maximum intensity on the veiling of the blades and thus take full advantage of the power of the mill. Unlike traditional windmills, which made the most of the wind coming from only one direction, this mill was therefore able to take advantage of the entire wind rose, constantly present in this area of Verezzi.

The Phoenician mill of Verezzi is one of those pearls of our beloved Liguria that we forget too often. If anyone asks “What is there to see in Borgio Verezzi?” the beach or the suggestive historical center comes to mind. Yet, not far from the center, there is a monument of inestimable historical value to the most unknown.

It is an internal blade mill, defined as a Phoenician mill. This name derives from the construction technique born in the Middle East and then spread throughout the Mediterranean area. The importance of this ancient construction is also given by its rarity: in fact, there are only two in the rest of the world. These, however, located in Spain and Sicily, are practically ruins that retain extraordinarily little of the original construction.

Windmills built with this technique have the main peculiarity of the internal presence of the driving blades. In this type of structure, the wind was channelled regardless of its direction thanks to the slits that surrounded it.

These openings to the outside, specially opened or closed according to requirements, allowed continuous work. The construction of the Phoenician mill in Verezzi at that point is not causal: the area in fact often presents highly inconstant winds, which would have caused considerable inconvenience with a traditional external blade mill.

The Church of Nostra Signora di Loreto

The church of Nostra Signora di Loreto or church of the Cinque Campanili stands on a hill just outside the town of Perti in Finale Ligure, in the province of Savona, in a dominant and very panoramic position on the valley, and  constitutes one of the very few examples in Liguria of Renaissance construction still impregnated with late Gothic influences.

The Renaissance-style building with Lombard influences represents an almost unique case in Liguria. Art historians have highlighted the architectural similarities with the chapel of San Pietro Martire, built by Pigello Portinari in the basilica of Sant’Eustorgio in Milan between 1462 and 1468. Given that the Portinari chapel was frescoed by Foppa and that he was active in Savona in the years 1489-1490, in which the chapel of Perti was built, Graziella Colmuto Zanella suggested that Foppa may have played an important role in the transfer of the Lombard model to Perti.

In addition to its unusual appearance, the church is in a respectable position: it dominates the valley and enjoys a wonderful panorama.

The church has a square plan surmounted by an octagonal dome with a polygonal apse leaning on one side. The interior is illuminated by large circular windows decorated with red brick cornices, also used in the decoration of the corners of the building alternating with stone blocks of the Finale. Above the 4 corners of the structure, 4 small and slender bell towers rise which frame the central one slightly higher and resting on the center of the dome. From this feature derives the nickname “church of the five bell towers”.

The construction of the church is attributed to the client of Alfonso I Del Carretto and his wife Peretta Cybo Usodimare: their coats of arms appear on the corner pillars of the building. The construction would take place in 1489-1490, immediately after their wedding (which took place in Rome on November 16, 1488). In the church there are frescoes by two Dominican blesseds, probably the finalese Domenico Folcheri da Perti and Vincenzo Maglio da Orco.

In addition to its unusual appearance, the church is in a respectable position: it dominates the valley and enjoys a wonderful panorama.

The Blue Dragonflies Waterfalls

For those who want to spend another day outdoors, there is the possibility to immerse themselves in a magical place. Far from horns and city noises, here is a corner of nature that combines a little fantasy with crystal colors: The Blue Dragonflies Waterfall. It is located in the hinterland of Finale Ligure, exactly in the hamlet of Calice Ligure named Rialto (Savona).

As soon as you arrive you are surrounded by emerald green, which is also reflected in the lakes of the waterway. And the name of the waterfall? It is connected to the particular inhabitants of this area: the Blue Dragonfly families that move throughout the surrounding woods. You can also swim under the waterfall and along the increasingly popular Torrente Pora.

The Blue Dragonfly Waterfall is a manned, controlled, and tidy place. To access safely, in fact, you go through the AgriBike Camping, and the offer of 1 euro that is requested for entry is a contribution intended for the protection of the site and maintenance of the access path. The path is short and suggestive, especially suitable for children: it is possible, in fact, to reach the Pora stream in 5 minutes.

Cosimo Melacca and Francesca Magillo, respectively farm manager and Environmental Hiking Guide, gave the name to this waterfall, enhancing it over the years. After the opening of the Camping and the cleaning of the path, in 2015 guided tours (here for info) to the highest and most beautiful waterfall in the whole Rialto began. Nearby there are other water jumps generated by two streams that are channeled into the narrow valley, almost in parallel, inhabited by a large colony of Calopterygidae or bridesmaids, more simply called blue dragonflies.

These cute little animals, which fly in summer, are witnesses of a healthy habitat, thanks to the clean waters of the waterways and the intact and luxuriant forest present in this Savonese gorge. In the area, there are also signs that narrate the habits of these insects, also inviting respect for simple rules of behaviour. Access to the waterfall is forbidden from October 1st to April 30th, for security reasons.

The post Top places to visit in Borgio Verezzi, a suggestive medieval village in Liguria between the rocks and the sea appeared first on bellaromedev.

The city was founded by Greek colonists from the Achaia region in the second half of the 8th century BC. in the place of a pre-existing indigenous settlement, and thanks to the diffusion of the Italo-Pythagorean phenomenon it represented one of the most important centers of Magna Grecia. The old city develops in a maze of narrow alleys and squares up to the cathedral and the central Piazza Pitagora, the point of contact between the “old” and “new” cities.

The namesake crater on the surface of Mars and the namesake minesweeper of the Italian Navy were named after Crotone.

Crotone overlooks the Ionian Sea, being located in the inner part of a large and beautiful gulf that goes from Capo Colonna to Capo Alice. Beyond Capo Colonna there is the promontory of Capo Rizzuto which is one of the most beautiful seaside places in the region and in Italy.

But Capo Rizzuto and Crotone are not only sea, cliffs and beaches. There are also very green natural parks that overlook two steps from the sea, with the dense forests of the Sila and the Montagnella Park, streams, lakes and sharp and impervious rocks.

The city stands between marine terraces, alluvial plains, sandstone bastions and tabular reliefs, in front of a sea rippled with clays. In the historical center, it is possible to admire important testimonies of the glorious past of this splendid city. Numerous buildings that can be admired in the ancient part, even if at times ruined, remain characteristic and suggestive.

Crotone reached its peak after the victory over Sibari in 510 BC. when it became the main center of Magna Grecia. In the 6th century B.C. the city became even more famous because Pythagoras founded his school there. Important evidence of the ancient city remains brought to light by the various excavations conducted over the past few years; many objects are now preserved in the Archaeological Museum of the city.

Crotone reached its maximum splendor after the victory over Sibari in 510 BC. when it became the main center of Magna Grecia. In the 6th century B.C. the city became even more famous because Pythagoras founded his school there. Important evidence of the ancient city remains brought to light by the various excavations conducted over the past few years; many objects are now preserved in the Archaeological Museum of the city.

Let’s begin our tour in this rich of history city!

Castle of Crotone

The wonderful Castle of Crotone, also called Castle of Charles V,  is located on the highest point of the city and dominates the landscape from Capo Alice to Capo Colonna with its size. It was built in fact for defensive purposes, even if the renovations of the 15th and 16th centuries have camouflaged its style and function as a fortress.

It is a pentagonal construction surrounded by five towers. The tower called Torrionetto and the northern part of the curtain wall have survived. Dating back to the Aragonese era, they are the helper tower and the commander tower.

The Castle was born as a rudimentary fortress on the ancient Greek Acropolis, to defend the territory from foreign invasions. The fortress (arx in Latin) overlooked the sea on one side and the countryside on the other and was placed in a place defended by nature, because it was surrounded by cliffs. “Arx Crotonis, a part imminens mari, altera vergente in agrum, situ tantum natural quondam munita, postea et muro cincta est, qua per aversas rupes ab Dionysio Siciliae tyranno per dolum fuerat capta” (Livius XXIV, 3).

The entrance to the castle was from the square of the same name, crossing a bridge that boasted a fixed part made of brickwork and a mobile part in wood. The entrance portal found space on a terrace in the shape of a truncated pyramid, from which you could see the curtain between the two towers, the access bridge and the moat.

The original shape of the Castle was transformed from a pentagon to a square with circular towers and the materials necessary for its construction were partially recovered from the ruins of the ancient city.

The first who managed to conquer it with a stratagem was Dionysius the elder, tyrant of Syracuse, in 380-378 BC. during the war between Syracuse and Crotone (Dionisio di Alicarnasso, Excerpta, XX, 7). It was later surrounded by walls.

Today the history of ancient Kroton is told in the rooms of the Archaeological Museum.

In a specific section, the ceramics found in the area of ancient Kerameikos, the shop district of the Greek polis, are exhibited.

Since 1987, an impressive Civic Museum has been set up in the Adjutant’s tower, while some renovations, which involved the Campana Barracks, have given a new location to the Municipal Library.

Cathedral Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta

This building is the Cathedral of Crotone and is dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta and San Dionigi l’Areopagita,  and it originates from the IX century.

Over the years, the architectural structure has undergone a series of renovations that have determined its current features. The facade, in neoclassical style, has three portals and is marked by two superimposed orders of pilasters with Tuscan capitals crowned, in the upper part, by a curvilinear tympanum.

The bell tower, incorporated in the main body of the structure, rises on the right nave. The style that the church presents today, therefore, was developed only at the end of the 19th century. The interior is characterized by a three-nave basilica plant, with a barrel vault and organ stand on the counter-façade.

In the central nave, leaning against the pillar of the last bay, stands the marble pulpit commissioned by Giuseppe Cavaliere in 1893 to Arch. Farinelli who will take care, over the years, of the realization of different works inside the Cathedral.

In the right nave, marked by altars and niches, there is the chapel called “Epiphany”. It has a checkerboard floor in which the Berlingeri coat of arms embellished with polychrome marble is inserted; wooden benches lean against the walls, almost a frame at the baptismal font, set in the center of the sacellum; on the altar is a painting depicting “The Adoration of the Magi”

Outside, the facade is in neoclassical style with a large bell tower next to it; the three portals open on the front of the church.

Inside, the church is structured on three naves with supporting pillars. Of great artistic value are the following objects : a baptismal font from the 13th century, a wooden choir from the 17th century, two wooden busts from San Gennaro and San Dionigi from the 17th century and a marble pulpit built in 1898.

The Byzantine icon of the Madonna of Capocolonna – famous for its dark complexion and also known as the “Black Madonna” –  is found in a nineteenth-century chapel that opens onto the right aisle, the chapel is also decorated with fine stuccos and paintings by Boschetto and De Falco.

Historic Center

The historic center of Crotone is located on a hill, close to the sea, enclosed until the end of the 19th century by the sixteenth-century walls with an ancient history.

According to archaeologists, the acropolis of ancient Kroton once stood here. It is said that it housed, among other buildings, the Temple of the Muses, home of the Pythagorean school, known throughout the Mediterranean. It is a highly layered urban fabric, to which, due to the continuous destruction, reconstruction, rearrangements, volume increases, superimposed over the course of about three centuries, no appellative of the Byzantine, Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque type can be attributed. Over the centuries the city was subjected to various foreign dominations whose influence is reflected in the heterogeneous style of its ancient center.

The typologies are made of many terraced houses, narrow and winding streets, where religious buildings and noble palaces emerge concentrated in the squares. Political power and religious power add up to these sections of social life, where shops of merchants and artisans overlook, but mainly dominated by the bulk of the church, the convent and the noble palace.

While piazza Castello has retained its peculiarity over the centuries as piazza d’armi, piazza del Duomo, the political center of the city, is home to the Casa Regia, the Palazzo Vescovile, as well as of course the Cathedral church.

On Largo Suriano (now Piazza Umberto I), intended for popular gatherings, overlooked the convent of San Francesco d’Assisi, now Seminary, with the annexed church and the houses of the Suriano, now Albani, and of the Marquis Berlingeri.

The historic center of Crotone was once enclosed within the walls, much of which was demolished shortly after the unification of Italy, characterized by narrow streets and small squares overlooked by noble palaces, such as Palazzo Galluccio, which has a portal with a round arch, surmounted by a balcony with a balustrade, supported by two pairs of paired columns with a smooth stem and capital attributable to the Doric style.

The elegant and massive noble building has a beautiful garden on the ramparts, closed by a gate on which the family coat of arms stands out or Palazzo Morelli, which has two facades and two floors. The first with windows, the second with balconies decorated with triangular rudders.

The arched door is laterally decorated with pilasters resting on bases, on which two Doric columns with smooth stems are placed. These elements act as a support for the central balcony surmounted by a lunette tympanum.

The crowning of the building is made with dentil cornices.

Pitagora Park

Pitagora Park, owned by the Municipality of Crotone, includes the Gardens and the Pythagoras Museum. Pythagoras Park is a park with games and installations built to teach through play.

The mathematical and philosophical games teach the thought of Pythagoras and a museum inside allows you to play with the application of that same thought. Pythagoras had moved to Crotone, an important colony of Magna Graecia, but it was thanks to the contribution of Pythagoras that he came to be the capital of a confederation of Greek polis

The Park Project is the result of a competition of ideas promoted by the Municipality of Crotone in 2003 as part of the Pic Urban II Community Initiative Program.

The project received the Honorable Mention AR Awards for Emerging Architecture in 2007 at the RIBA, Royal Institute of British Architects in London “and in 2008 the Urbanpromo Urban Planning Award.

The gardens and the Museum of Pythagoras combine science, art, nature, history, philosophy, mathematics, music.

In the Pythagoras Gardens 17 exhibits with a mathematical-philosophical-musical theme are distributed.

The visit takes place along themed itineraries with the help of interactive tablets as well as expert guides.

It is structured on two levels between which a spiral promenade is divided which distributes the various museum functions.

Church of the Immaculate Conception

The church of the Immaculate Conception is a church located in the historic center of Crotone in Corso V. Emanuele.

The church was built in the 16th century, on the remains of a sacred building two centuries older. The facade is divided into two levels made up of columns and a portal, the lower one, and columns and niches, the upper one. Near the building, you can still admire the remains of the ancient city wall that stand right next to the church.

Inside,  it is characterized by wall decorations and frescoes with a Neapolitan Baroque flavor and linked to the pictorial style of the 19th century. Among the various works of art kept, of particular interest is a seventeenth-century wooden crucifix, transported here from the nearby church of San Giuseppe which contains one of the few crucifixes in the world, the “Crucified Christ”, to represent Jesus with his eyes open, a moment before dying and not with your eyes closed, as we are used to seeing.

The apse, behind the altar, consists of three niches which guard the statues of the Immaculate Virgin Mary.

Its peculiarity is that it houses a crucifix, one of the few in which Christ appears with his eyes open, just before he dies, while he is usually represented with his eyes closed.

In the underlying level of the sacred building there is the crypt which preserves some wooden statues, paintings and a small altar where, in the past, persecuted Christians met in prayer [without source]. The room is partly frescoed with characters and stories from the Gospels.

In a small window there are hundreds of skulls of the faithful surmounted by a wooden statue of the Risen Christ.

On 22 June 1777, the church was consecrated with solemn rite by the then bishop Giuseppe Capocchiani.

Capo Rizzuto Island

Capo Rizzuto Island  is an Italian town of 17 868 inhabitants  in the province of Crotone, in Calabria.

It was born around 900 AD. with the Greek toponym of “Asylon” under the regency of Leo VI the philosopher, Roman emperor of the East. had problems with the institutions to have a second chance in the land of Calabria, thus Asylon was born, the sacred land where no one could be persecuted, with a meaning much more similar to that of “asylum” than “island”. The real population growth of the small diocese of Isola occurs around 1090 AD. under the investiture as bishop of the holy thaumaturge Luca di Melicuccà or San Luca di Isola Capo Rizzuto, during its administration Asylon has an extension that starts from the current urban center of Isola Capo Rizzuto following the coast to the Tacina river, under the jurisdiction of the diocese of Isola Capo Rizzuto, in addition to the territory of Le Castella, also included the territories of San Leonardo and Steccato.

In the village of Isola there are remains of the sixteenth-century fortified complex of the Feudale Castle (in via S. Marco), built in the medieval period, enlarged in 1549, by the Neapolitan feudal lord Giovanni Antonio Ricca; remains of spurred corner quadrilateral towers; Relics of the walls of the perimeter curtain with pivellini; “l’Orologio”, the gate of the medieval village, surmounted by a turret of the rear clock, which divides the ancient area from the more modern one.

In the hamlet of Le Castella, there is the famous fortification, of 16th century origin, stretched out on a small peninsula overlooking the sea. It was built to counter frequent invasions. The monumental quarries of blocks and column drums of the Greek age (VI-III century BC) on Punta Cannone and in the port area are very important. The drums of the columns of the Temple of Hera Lacinia, located on the promontory of Capo Colonna, were presumably extracted from them.

On the coast stands the “Old Tower”, a cylindrical tower, with massive creasing with stone ashlars, built in the century. Coast guard XVI against barbarian incursions. The tower was guarded by a corporal and a soldier, who had the task of monitoring day and night and signalling the presence of suspicious ships with particular signals: smoke during the day and bonfire at night. Access to the tower was via a rustic wooden drawbridge.

The Sanctuary of the Greek Madonna, in Capo Rizzuto, is dedicated to the protector of Isola di Capo Rizzuto. Simple and majestic, it is newly built: the laying of the first stone dates back to 1991.

The surface of the Sanctuary is approximately 800 m2 and is enriched with another 200 mq of balconies.

Archaeological area of ​​Capo Colonna

The archaeological area of ​​Capo Colonna is a state archaeological site located in Capo Colonna, near Crotone, which can be reached via a coastal road from the capital. It is included in the list of national monuments.

The sanctuary of Hera Lacinia di Capo Colonna, dependent on the ancient city of Crotone, was one of the most important sanctuaries of Magna Graecia from the archaic age until the fourth century BC, until that was the seat of the Italiota league before it moved to Taranto.

The site of the sanctuary was in a strategic position along the coastal routes that linked Taranto to the Strait of Messina, on a promontory formerly called Lacinion, which also gave the epithet to the venerated goddess, Hera Lacinia. Today’s name instead recalls the ruins of the temple (with the last “column” standing), while the name used until modern times, “Capo Nao”, is nothing but a contraction of the Greek naos, which means temple.

The sanctuary was built at the end of the 6th century BC. and it was also called of Hera Eleytheria, as evidenced by an inscription on the memorial stone of Lacinion, in the National Archaeological Museum of Crotone. In the 16th century it was almost completely ransacked to reuse building materials.

The complex consisted of several buildings, of which some remains are visible today. The actual Doric temple, with six columns on the facade (hexastyle), stretched out towards the sea and had the classic shape of Greek temples: an imposing complex of forty-eight Doric-style columns [without source] over 8 meters high and made up of eight grooved bobbins.

The roof was of marble slabs and Parian marble tiles. Nothing is known of the decorations which, however, were certainly present, as can be deduced from the discovery of a female head in Greek marble and a few other fragments. The column, in Doric style, until 1638 was flanked by another fall due to an earthquake and rests on the few remains of the mighty stylobate.

The temple complex also includes at least three other buildings called “Building B”, “Building H”, “Building K”:

Building B, which has a rectangular plan, is believed to be the original temple. This thesis is supported by the discovery of finds that would have been dated back to the eighth century BC;

Building H, with a square plan, also called Hestiatorion, is divided into various rooms. The discovery of typical furnishings of the rooms dedicated to meals can lead to the conclusion that it was the canteen and refreshment building for travellers as well as priests. In any case, the dating of this “Building H” dates back to the 4th century BC. when the temple had already taken on great celebrity.

Building K, or Katagogion, also dates back to the 4th century BC, has an “L” shape and only the bases remain. It is presumed to be a portico of columns, always in Doric style, which united a series of rooms and a courtyard. It was probably the guesthouse where important visitors could find accommodation, while their companions had to settle for much less refined and resistant constructions.

The excavations have rediscovered a part of the original architectural decorations, in Greek marble and datable to a construction phase of the fifth century BC, which are now located in Crotone. In the capital there are also the remains of the Parian marble roof, after Croton’s victory over Sibari, and votive offerings, often with inscriptions.

The post A guide to ancient Crotone, rich in history and culture appeared first on bellaromedev.

Just think that taking a walk in Corso Vittorio Emanuele means walking over the drainage channel of the Terme di Agrippa, which carried the wastewater from there to the Tiber and which today is a long tunnel. And having a stroll in via del Corso is equivalent to walking over the terminal stretch of via Flaminia, a paved road that dates back to 223 BC.

The archaeological investigations following the opening of a hole in Piazza della Rotonda in front of the Pantheon have brought to light the ancient imperial flooring. The seven travertine slabs, which are located at an altitude of about 2.30 / 2.70 meters below the road surface with dimensions of about 80 by 90 centimeters for a thickness of 30 centimeters, were first found in the 1990s of the last century, on the occasion of the construction of a tunnel of underground utilities (polifera), and the excavation was surveyed and documented.

“After more than twenty years from their first discovery – Daniela Porro, special superintendent of Rome explains – the slabs of the ancient pavement of the square in front of the Pantheon emerge intact, protected by a layer of fine pozzolan.”

In imperial times, the square was much larger than the current one and opened in front of the Pantheon, the temple dedicated to all the gods built by Agrippa between 27 and 25 BC. The area was completely renovated in the second century after Christ by the emperor Hadrian, and the square was also raised and again paved. The altitudes where the slabs are located, now brought to light, appear to be pertinent to the Hadrianic phase of the complex.

The construction site will continue in the next few days for water restoration and with further archaeological investigations by the Special Superintendence of Rome in collaboration with the Capitoline Superintendence for Cultural Heritage.

“Rome never ceases to amaze us. The slabs of the ancient pavement of the square in front of the Pantheon that were discovered in the 90s re-emerged. A wonderful testimony to the history of our city and our precious historical and cultural heritage “, the mayor of the Capital, Virginia Raggi, said on Twitter.

The post That mystery revealed by the holes: there is a Pantheon under the Pantheon appeared first on bellaromedev.

Just think that taking a walk in Corso Vittorio Emanuele means walking over the drainage channel of the Terme di Agrippa, which carried the wastewater from there to the Tiber and which today is a long tunnel. And having a stroll in via del Corso is equivalent to walking over the terminal stretch of via Flaminia, a paved road that dates back to 223 BC.

The archaeological investigations following the opening of a hole in Piazza della Rotonda in front of the Pantheon have brought to light the ancient imperial flooring. The seven travertine slabs, which are located at an altitude of about 2.30 / 2.70 meters below the road surface with dimensions of about 80 by 90 centimeters for a thickness of 30 centimeters, were first found in the 1990s of the last century, on the occasion of the construction of a tunnel of underground utilities (polifera), and the excavation was surveyed and documented.

“After more than twenty years from their first discovery – Daniela Porro, special superintendent of Rome explains – the slabs of the ancient pavement of the square in front of the Pantheon emerge intact, protected by a layer of fine pozzolan.”

In imperial times, the square was much larger than the current one and opened in front of the Pantheon, the temple dedicated to all the gods built by Agrippa between 27 and 25 BC. The area was completely renovated in the second century after Christ by the emperor Hadrian, and the square was also raised and again paved. The altitudes where the slabs are located, now brought to light, appear to be pertinent to the Hadrianic phase of the complex.

The construction site will continue in the next few days for water restoration and with further archaeological investigations by the Special Superintendence of Rome in collaboration with the Capitoline Superintendence for Cultural Heritage.

“Rome never ceases to amaze us. The slabs of the ancient pavement of the square in front of the Pantheon that were discovered in the 90s re-emerged. A wonderful testimony to the history of our city and our precious historical and cultural heritage “, the mayor of the Capital, Virginia Raggi, said on Twitter.

The post That mystery revealed by the holes: there is a Pantheon under the Pantheon appeared first on bellaromedev.

From the urbanistic point of view, the city is one of the few capitals (with Ferrara, Bergamo, Lucca) whose historical center has been completely surrounded by a circle of walls, as a whole intact, which has kept its appearance almost unchanged over the centuries.

Grosseto has an interesting historical and cultural center. Over the years, however, the walls lost their strategic importance and, once demilitarized (18th century), were destined for public use and embellished with tree-lined avenues and gardens that still allow today to take long walks on ramparts, once a bulwark of Grosseto.

The archaeological finds recovered in the north east area testify that the first traces of a small town in the city of Grosseto date back to the Etruscan era.

The name of the city, however, is found for the first time in a parchment from 803 AD. where the written evidence of a settlement “in loco Grossito” appears, which, in 973 already appears to be a fief of the Aldobrandeschi.

Thus began the “dominion” of this powerful family from Lucca who transformed Grosseto from a castle to a court and subsequently, in April 1138, into civitas, in conjunction with the transfer of the episcopal see from the ancient Etruscan – Roman city of Roselle to Grosseto.

In 1151, as the first ideas of the Municipality began to emerge, Siena began to lay the foundations for expansion in this part of the Maremma and thus the first loyalty agreements were signed. The domination of Grosseto by Siena lasted for a long time.

In 1421, the city statute was issued; the municipality of Grosseto, to be included as “dominated”, however maintained a certain autonomy, especially in the administrative area. The first period of the Sienese submission was literally dramatic. In Grosseto, as indeed throughout Europe, the Black Plague raged (1348), in this area also the swamping of the land, depopulation, malaria, and other epidemics, mowed down the population which in 1369 had reduced to a hundred of families.

At the end of the eighteenth century, the history of Grosseto was linked to the French Revolution, the Napoleonic rule and the restoration that brought the Lorraines back to the throne.

Finally, with the plebiscite of 15 May 1860 the fate of the city followed those of the unification of Italy.

Let’s begin our virtual tour in this Tuscan city rich of charm and history!

The Cathedral

Entitled to the patron saint of Grosseto, the cathedral of San Lorenzo is the most important monument in the city. As evidenced by an inscription located on the right end of the facade, the cathedral was built from the end of the thirteenth century under the direction of the master Sozzo Rustichini, who also participated in the construction of the facade of the Cathedral of Siena. The works – interrupted by the onset of the war between Grosseto and Siena – were resumed around 1340.

Inside the Cathedral, there are some works, including: a font from 1506; a baptismal font by Antonio Ghini; the two stained glass windows designed by Benvenuto di Giovanni depicting the first Isaiah and Micah, the Annunciation, the saints Peter the Apostle and Jerome, the saints Catherine of Alexandria and Mary Magdalene, the second the Faith and Hope, the saints Michael the Archangel, Giovanni Battista, Bartolomeo apostolo, Ludovico, Lorenzo and Sebastiano; a polychrome wooden crucifix from the second half of the 15th century; two candelabrum-holding angels by Domenico Arrighetti; finally, the venerated Madonna delle Grazie, in the left chapel of the transept, the central part of a panel by Matteo di Giovanni, dating back to 1470.

Many of the works of art originally located in the cathedral are now preserved in the sacred art museum of the diocese.

In the sixteenth century, a series of interventions, due to the Sienese architect Anton Maria Lari, affected the interior and the facade, which was profoundly remodelled even during the nineteenth century.

The atmosphere created by the beams of light coming from the richly decorated Gothic windows on the right wall is very suggestive.

Grosseto Walls

The walls of Grosseto constitute the defensive system of the historic center of Grosseto.

They are one of the rare examples in Italy of walls that have come almost intact to the present day.

The construction of the ancient medieval city wall began simultaneously with the foundation of the city of Grosseto, starting from the XII century and were destroyed and rebuilt several times over the following centuries.

Much of their current appearance was conferred by the redevelopment works carried out between 1574 and 1593, designed by the architect Baldassarre Lanci, who received the assignment directly from the Grand Duke Francesco I de ‘Medici.

The defensive wall develops along a hexagonal perimeter, with corners defended by polygonal bastions, with guard posts placed at the outermost corners of the bulwarks. Until 1757 the city walls were surrounded by an external moat and an earthen embankment. In 1855 Leopold II demolished most of the guard posts located on the ramparts, softening the appearance of the entire wall circuit which was transformed into a tree-lined public promenade and made available to the citizens of Grosseto.

During the Second World War, a bombing destroyed the last remaining sentry box, called the casino of the balls, inside which some frescoes were kept. Recent restoration work has brought the entire wall circle back to its former glory.

Following the walls you will find Porta Vecchia, the oldest city gate that led from Via Aurelia into the historic center, the Bastione Cavallerizza, Porta Corsica, the Bastione Molino a Vento, so called because originally there was a windmill and today it houses a citrus garden.

The walls also include Bastione Garibaldi, Porta Nuova, Bastione Rimembranza, Bastione Fortezza, an imposing complex that includes the Cassero Senese, the Piazza d’Armi and the Chapel of Santa Barbara, which constituted the fortified citadel of Grosseto. And also the Porta di Santa Lucia, the Bastione della Vittoria and the Bastione Maiano, the oldest of all, built in 1566, almost a decade before the Medici renovation of the walls.

During the nineteenth century, the entire wall was completely transformed into a public city park with a path that winds along tree-lined avenues. Once the redevelopment work was completed, the Porta Nuova was demolished and the surrounding area was flattened to allow the extension of Corso Carducci; a gate was placed in place of the pre-existing door which was then definitively removed in the first half of the twentieth century.

Also in the first half of the twentieth century, a new lowered arch door, called Porta Corsica, was built along the stretch of the walls between the Bastione Cavallerizza and the Bastione Molino a Vento. For some years, restoration works have been underway on various sections of the walls in order to restore the monumental walls to their former glory.

The Archaeological and Art Museum of the Maremma

The Archaeological and Art Museum of the Maremma (MAAM) is a museum located in the historic center of Grosseto, in Piazza Baccarini, set up jointly with the diocesan museum of sacred art.

The museum was born in 1860 on the initiative of the canon Giovanni Chelli, who created a sort of antiquarium in Grosseto, with an exhibition of ancient objects, and presumed such, together with the institution of the library, housed in the premises of the Palazzo Vescovile. On 21 August 1862, the priest wrote to the minister of public education to declare the museum governmental with a decree, and after various insistence by Chelli, on 6 March 1865 the donation of the library-museum was made to the Municipality of Grosseto: the official editorial staff of the deed was held on March 30 of the same year in the council hall of the Town Hall.

The most relevant piece of the Museum is certainly the bucchero bowl with graffiti alphabet from the 6th century. B.C. The next section is dedicated to the largest archaeological center in the Grosseto area, Roselle, an Etruscan city founded at the end of the Iron Age, conquered in 294 BC. from Rome and bishopric documented since the end of the fifth century. It is therefore the city of which historically and ideally Grosseto is the heir starting from 1138, the year of the translation of the episcopal see. Each phase of the city’s long life is documented in the museum.

The stele of warriors come from the necropolis of the archaic age (6th century BC); from the Roman forum two important statuary complexes, one linked to the imperial cult (around 50 A.D.), and the other, which reuses older statues, dedicated to an important family of the second century A.D .; in the paleochristian church, first and oldest cathedral, were instead the architectural decorations of the Carolingian age. The second floor, with section 3, collects the archaeological documentation of the Maremma. The Eubo crater from Pescia Romana, attributed to the Painter of Cesnola, (about 730 BC), orientalizing Etruscan outfits from Vetulonia and Marsiliana, amphorae and anchors documenting the Etruscan traffics of the archaic age, and, starting from the third century. B.C. the manifestations of Etruscan cultural persistence (language, writing, funeral uses) alongside the innovations introduced by the conquering Romans (votive deposits, rustic settlements).

Finally, the reconstruction of the African wreck of Giglio Porto (III century AD) with its load of oil amphorae is one of the many reasons of interest in this section. On the third floor the Museum of Sacred Art of the Diocese of Grosseto is a museum in the museum: it is due to the Bishop’s foresight with the Chapter of the Cathedral, the Superintendency and the Municipality of Grosseto if the Diocesan Museum is combined with the Archaeological Museum based on an agreement that has always been renewed since 1975. Of great value is the collection of works from the churches of the Diocese, mostly attributable to Sienese artists working for the Maremma center.

The last rooms of the museum introduce the history of the city of Grosseto.

The exhibition rooms dedicated to medieval and modern finds from various centers of the Maremma close the exhibition.

Piazza Dante Alighieri

Piazza Dante Alighieri is the central square of Grosseto and is home to many important buildings in the city. Formerly known as Piazza delle Catene, it is characterized by the typical trapezoidal shape.

The square, with its characteristic trapezoidal shape, consists of two areas that rejoin each other, without interruption, in front of the churchyard. The main area of the square is included between the southern right side of the cathedral, the main facade of Palazzo Aldobrandeschi and the arcade of the arcades which is articulated seamlessly on the southern and western sides.

At the center of a slightly raised area, under which there was a cistern, there is the monument to Grand Duke Leopoldo II of Lorraine, which stands at the point where in the past centuries the well of the corresponding cistern below must have been present. The area that encloses the underground cistern is delimited by a series of columns and chains, which led the Grossetani to call this section of Piazza Dante “Piazza delle Catene”.

The other space in the square is delimited by the churchyard, the Palazzo Comunale and Palazzo Alben. Corso Carducci, which is the main street of the city, begins in the northern part.

Piazza Dante Alighieri sees its origins in 1222 when it was intended as platea communis. With the move of the city from Roselle to Grosseto, the headquarters of the institutions were moved to the buildings of this precise place by order of Pope Innocent II.

From 1292 it was decided to follow the approach of each Tuscan city and to bring all the most important municipal buildings of the city to the main square. During the submission of the city to Siena, Piazza Dante Alighieri was home to all the major representatives of it.

During the 1430s the presence of many commercial activities in the square are remembered and in this period the perimeter is completed bringing it to what it is today.

In 1465 work began on a well that does not exist today. During the Medici period, the city fell into disuse and the intervention of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany under the Lorena family had to wait, which began renovations, which were certainly not the last to accompany the square to the present day.

After the war,  the square was named after Dante Alighieri. In 1956 Piazza Dante underwent substantial changes: the stone stones, chains and benches were eliminated, the pavement was replaced, and a parking lot was built in the center of the square, which developed radially around the statue of the Grand Duke.

Only in 2002,  an important redevelopment work was carried out: the square was brought back to the nineteenth-century aspect, with columns and chains, so much so that today it is again known as Piazza delle Catene.

Church of Saint Frances

The church of San Francesco d’Assisi in Grosseto, originally dedicated to San Fortunato, was ceded by the Benedictines to the Franciscans in the thirteenth century together with the adjoining cloister.

In the following epochs the complex has undergone various restorations: the bell tower that rises on the rear right of the church was destroyed by lightning and raised in 1926 by the architect Lorenzo Porciatti.

In 1964 Adriano Celentano and Claudia Mori got married in this church; the mass at dawn (to escape the photographers) was celebrated by the Franciscan father Ugolino Vagnuzzi, a friend of the couple and for many years a spiritual adviser to nationally renowned artists. The church, which is one of the most important in the city, has a simple façade with a portal characterized by a lunette with a fresco, in turn dominated and protected by a wooden tabernacle, above which there is a rose window.

The interior has a single nave in Gothic-Franciscan style, with a gable roof, and preserves various works of art including the famous crucifix on wood made by Duccio di Boninsegna towards the end of the thirteenth century. Inside there are also frescoes dating from the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries.

The cloister of the convent develops on the left side of the church and is characterized by a portico supported by octagonal columns; the cloister gives access to the sacristy, the church and the convent premises. At the center of the cloister stands the sixteenth century Pozzo della Bufala, flanked by two travertine columns on which rests a fine crown: below it is the cistern for collecting rainwater.

On the square in front of the right side of the church and the bell tower there is another well that collected rainwater in the cistern below to distribute it to the various houses in the area.

The construction of the Medici walls, starting from the end of the 16th century, brought about a reduction in the size of the Franciscan convent attached to the church, and consequently the reorganization of its spaces.

The most important intervention on the building was the seventeenth-century addition of the chapel dedicated to Sant’Antonio da Padova, frescoed by Francesco Nasini, while in 1623 the bell tower was rebuilt which, ruined in 1917 by lightning, was later rebuilt in style.

Church of Saint Peter

The church of Saint Peter is the oldest religious building in the city of Grosseto. The church is located along Corso Carducci, the main street in the historic city center, near the crossroads that leads to the nearby churches of Bigi and San Francesco. Cited for the first time in a document dated 1188, the church of San Pietro had considerable importance in the early medieval history of Grosseto. From the Middle Ages onwards the church was officiated continuously, unlike many of the oldest churches in Grosseto which were abandoned until they disappeared (San Giorgio, San Michele, Santa Lucia).

An excavation intervention, aimed at restoration (2004-2005), allows today to read a longer and more complex history that dates back to the early Middle Ages and closely links the events of the church to those of the city.

The early medieval church appears entirely contained within the current building and slightly divergent in orientation. At the end of the ninth century the church was renovated and enlarged, erecting a new apse about 2 m from the previous one. In the XII century the early medieval structure was shaved to build the present Romanesque church; the date could be after 1138 (translation of the episcopal see from Roselle to Grosseto). The slight rotation of the building compared to the previous one was attributed to a possible change in the road layout, also linked to the urban renewal of Grosseto after the translation.

The gabled facade is original up to about 4.50 m in height, with the portal framed by pilasters and the lozenge-shaped hollows, inspired by Pisa, which contained pottery now lost; higher up the mullioned window and arches can be attributed to the heavy restoration of 1911, probably the work of Lorenzo Porciatti.

Four reliefs are inserted in the facade: it is a palmette frieze, a running dog, an eagle and a San Leonardo dating from approximately the twelfth and thirteenth centuries and according to some to the Cathedral or in any case to other buildings in the historic center. The bell tower was built in its current form in 1625 using the foundations of a previous bell tower or, in any case, of an element in phase with the late 9th century church.

Inside, the restorations eliminated the rough interventions of 1952, and in particular the lining of the walls.

Some façade restorations were carried out in 1911 by Lorenzo Porciatti, while in 1952 some gross interventions were reported in the interior which were then eliminated during the last cycle of restorations carried out between 2004 and 2005 by the architect Alberto Vero.

Roselle

Roselle, also Bagni di Roselle or Bagno Roselle if only the modern part is taken into consideration, is a fraction of the Italian municipality of Grosseto, in Tuscany.

Founded before the seventh century. to. C., it was one of the twelve Etruscan city states. The archaeological site is very interesting: the overlapping respectively of the Villanovian, Etruscan and finally Roman civilizations has brought to us remains of exceptional value: from the walls, to the amphitheater, from the Domus of the mosaics, to the temple of the Flamines Augustales, the basilica , the portico, the tabernae, the thermal district, the decumanus, the forum and the necropolis

The ancient city of Roselle stood on an elliptical rise comprising two hills separated by a median valley, the heart of the political and religious life of the community in all eras. Although traces of frequentation during Prehistory and Protohistory are attested, Roselle was urbanized by the Etruscans in the seventh century BC.

The choice of this area for an organized settlement was not accidental. In fact, the elevated position allowed the natural possibility of defending the place and the control of the current plain of Grosseto, formerly occupied by Lake Prile, a large lagoon communicating with the sea.

The Etruscan city was conquered by the Romans in 294 BC, by the consul Lucio Postumio Megello. The historian Tito Livio (X, 37, 3) thus recalls the conquest: the army was transferred to the territory of Roselle and here the countryside was not only devastated, but the city was also conquered; more than two thousand men were taken prisoner, a little less were killed around the walls. In the 1st century A.D., about three centuries after the Roman conquest, Roselle was affected by an intense building and monumental activity, determined by the Augustan protection and the munificence of powerful local families.

In the late imperial age,  it was subject to the decline that affected the Roman cities and in the Middle Ages, although it was a bishop’s seat, it was reduced to a modest center, with a reduced extension compared to that occupied by the Roman city, whose structures were often reused. In 1138 a bull of Pope Innocent II decreed the transfer of the diocese to the nearby center of Grosseto.

From this moment,  Roselle was subjected to a progressive abandonment and was reduced to a wild solitude of stones and thorny bushes – den of the fox and the wild boar, of the snake and of the lizard – visited only by the herdsman and the shepherd –  as described by George Dennis, 19th-century English diplomat and scholar, on the occasion of his visit to the Maremma in search of Etruscan antiquities.

The Archaeological Superintendence of Tuscany, from the sixties of the last century to today, has continuously conducted research and restoration and enhancement interventions in Roselle.

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It is one of the main tourist resorts of the Marche region, attracting visitors from all over Italy and Europe.

Its territory is mainly flat but surrounded by hills sloping down towards the sea; the historic center follows the urban layout of the Roman city which was founded on a hill south of the Misa river.

Senigallia was founded between 389 and 383 BC from the Gallic tribe of the Senoni who had settled in the north of the Marche up to the valley of the river Esino, in the current province of Ancona: probably the choice, made according to legend by the chief tribe Brenno, was dictated by the presence of a low hill facing the sea and dominating the existing ford. From here, defined the “capital” of the Gauls in Italy, at the head of Brenno they moved against Rome, winning their armies and withdrawing only after paying a heavy tribute.

Since 1997 Senigallia has been continuously awarded the Blue Flag, the recognition that the FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education) gives to places that guarantee the quality of bathing water, attention to environmental management, information to the user, services and safety on the beach.

Senigallia boasts a long beach, the velvet beach, spacious and deep, ideal for family holidays. The seabed slopes gently and also allow children to dive without fear. The Blue Flag is the guarantee of water quality and virtuous environmental management.

Senigallia is one of the most sought-after seaside tourism centers on the Adriatic coast with over 13 km of golden sand. Available to holiday-makers accommodation for all tastes, from 5-star hotels to low-cost camping.

And then bathing establishments, bars, restaurants, pizzerias, pubs, discos to satisfy every need, even that of children.

Let’s start our visit in this amazing Italian town!

Rocca Roveresca

The Rocca di Senigallia, also known as Rocca Roveresca, named after the clients, Della Rovere, is located in Senigallia, in the Marche region, in the province of Ancona and is one of the most important monuments in the city. The Rocca, owned by the Italian State, already being delivered to the Superintendency for the Architectural Heritage and Landscape of the Marche region, has been part of the assets managed by the Marche Museum Center since December 2014. It is one of the most visited monuments in the region and hosts exhibitions, musical and artistic events. In 2015 it registered 46.090 visitors.

Rocca Roveresca is an essential stop in visiting the city of Senigallia. The Rocca can be defined as an extraordinary history book: in fact, it is the result of the overlap of defensive structures that have followed over the centuries, since the origins of the city, in a site of decisive strategic importance.

Over time, towers and bastions have been added to the defensive structure since the Roman foundation of the city: the remains of the 14th century Rocchetta built by Egidio Albornoz are still visible, behind which the Rocca di Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta (1450) was built in 1450.

The current structure of the monument is due to Giovanni della Rovere, lord of Senigallia, and son-in-law of Federico III da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino. It was precisely Duke Federico who made the best architects of the time available to Giovanni: Luciano Laurana and Baccio Pontelli. The intervention began in 1478 with the aim of adapting the fortress to new defensive needs. In 1503 the fortress was conquered by Cesare Borgia who in Senigallia made the famous massacre described by Niccolò Machiavelli.

The Rocca Roveresca is unique in its kind because it was not only a fortress, but also a stately home, home to an artillery school founded by Guidubaldo della Rovere in 1533; the ducal dynasty became extinct, after the return of the city under the dominion of the Church in 1631, it was a papal prison and an orphanage.

Today it hosts art exhibitions and prestigious cultural events.

Palazzo del Duca

Palazzo del Duca is one of the most representative historical buildings in the city of Senigallia (AN), in the Marche region.

The structure, formerly the representative residence of the Della Rovere and their guests since the 16th century, stands in front of the Rocca Roveresca, on the longest side of the homonymous square which served as a courtyard.

Wanted by Guidobaldo II della Rovere, the work was then completed by Francesco Maria II. Girolamo Genga’s design was concluded in the second half of the 16th century.

Inside, a splendid coffered ceiling attributed to Taddeo Zuccari embellishes the Throne Room. The forty-nine chests of drawers were probably made between 1553 and 1555 and recall joyful, cheerful, festive atmospheres. But you can also notice irony and satire about political and cultural power: the master Zuccari paints carnival themes showing an imaginary upside down world, where children, represented by putti, rule over adults, and the poor over the rich. Also in the Throne Room there is also a genealogical tree on paper of the Della Rovere family.

The building overlooks the homonymous square, whose name refers instead to Giovanni Della Rovere. The square has unique characteristics for the Renaissance period: no religious building overlooks it and the so-called Fountain of the Ducks (or Lions) is located in a decentralized position, thus confirming the military use of this space.

The fountain, built between 1599 and 1602, was commissioned by Francesco Maria II della Rovere to remind the population of the rehabilitation of the Saline marshland.

Ducks symbolize the poultry fauna present in the wetland, while the water features represent the control of the waters, once carriers of diseases and now a symbol of prosperity.

Ercolani Arcades

Ercolani Arcades, which line the right bank of the Misa with a suggestive sequence of one hundred and twenty-six arches in Istrian stone, were built to welcome the many merchants who arrived in the city in July on the occasion of the famous Frankish Fair of La Maddalena.

Ercolani Arcades replace the walls of the ancient fortress city which no longer has any reason to exist and are the symbol of the new market town.

The arcades testify a period of great splendour for Senigallia and the work is undoubtedly one of the major characteristics of the city. Monsignor Giuseppe Ercolani (1677-1759), who designed them in the mid-eighteenth century by the will of Pope Benedict XIV, aka Prospero Lambertini, is remembered in the name, with the aim of hosting the famous Franca Fair in continuous expansion.

Ercolani Arcades are still the place designated for trade, in fact they fill up with colors and stalls during the three days of the Sant’Agostino fair (from 28 to 30 August) and every Thursday for the weekly market. Nothing to do, however, with the golden days of the Maddalena fair, when the flow of merchants was so high that the arcades seemed to be insufficient to contain them all.

These blocks of white stone (from Istria) constitute the 126 majestic arches that rest on square pillars, following the course of the Misa river before the waters disperse into the Adriatic Sea.

Originally, they should have also extended to the left bank, but this idea was abandoned due to the excessive cost of the works.

Church of the Cross

The Church of the Cross is a sacred building in Senigallia dating back to 1608, built on the wishes of the Confraternity of the Sacrament and of the Cross near the central Piazza Roma.

The late Renaissance exterior contrasts with the Baroque interior, characterized by six lateral altars surrounding the altarpiece of the Carriage of Christ at the tomb of Federico Barocci, located above the main altar.

Designed by the ducal architect Muzio Oddi, the Church was consecrated in 1608 on behalf of the Confraternity of the Sacrament and the Cross active in assisting the neediest. The original idea was in fact to make it an oratory for the confreres, and its structure recalls more a room than a church.

The present decorations are admirable, including stuccos, golds, six side altars and the unusual coffered ceiling, a masterpiece of shades between gold and bronze. This small and precious church houses numerous works of art including a authentic jewel: the Altarpiece painted by Federico Barocci in 1592 representing The Burial of Christ.

The painting depicts Christ brought to the tomb by Giuseppe d’Arimatea and Nicodemo, almost an ideal continuation of the “Deposition”, previously painted for the Cathedral of Perugia. In the background the Monte Calvario and the Ducal Palace of Urbino.

Among the side altars, the one dedicated to Santa Barbara stands out, with two cannon barrels to frame the painting of the saint, patron, among other things, of the bombers who had a training school at the Rocca Roveresca.

The main altar has a sumptuous tabernacle with golden embroidery in floral bas-relief and cherubs. Six other altars are arranged on the sides and contain 17th and 18th century works. The ceiling has an extraordinary square coffered decoration, enriched with arabesques and a central band with the symbols of the Cross and the Eucharist, the coat of arms of the Confraternity of the Sacrament and the Cross. In addition to the statue of the dead Christ, a work made of wood dated XVII, you can admire a backdrop of Barocci “The transport of the dead Christ to the sepulcher” and 4 works by the Senigallian painter Giovanni Anastasi (“The nativity”, “The adoration of the magi “,” The Nunciating angel “and” The virgin Annunziata “).

Museum of modern art, information, and photography

The museum of modern art, information and photography – MUSINF is a museum established in 1981 in order to document the history of the relationship between word and image in information, up to the most recent forms of copy art, visual poetry, computer art, fax art. The structure is located in a building near the La Fenice theater, founded in 1981 by the Municipality on the advice of the critic Carlo Emanuele Bugatti and with the approval of the artists Virgilio Guidi, Umberto Mastroianni and Orfeo Tamburi.

The museum, to which various artists have given their works, documents the history of the relationship between word and image in information, up to the most recent forms of copy art, visual poetry, ex libris and mail art, positioning itself between the main Italian centers for the documentation of contemporary art, engraving and photography.

The section dedicated to photography contains over 1,700 images donated by more than 50 artists. Particular attention was given to the Photographic Association Misa (to which photographers such as Ferruccio Ferroni and Piergiorgio Branzi joined), born in Senigallia thanks to Giuseppe Cavalli, and to the 250 photos of Mario Giacomelli dating back to the fifties.

The collection includes 350 xerography, 11 volumes and other material from the Xeros-Art of Milan, also exhibited in 1988 at the Ancona fair, exhibited with the title of Electroworks and in which they exhibited some of the most important artists of international copy art such as Julien Blaine, Guglielmo Achille Cavellini, Emilio Morandi, Bruno Munari, Clemente Padin, Pierre Restany, Daniele Sasson.

The origins of the archive dedicated to this branch of the Avant-garde are due to the artists Eugenio Miccini and Mirella Bentivoglio, who first donated some of their works. In a short time, about 200 other personalities (including foreigners) from the sector did the same, including the Italian Institute of New York University, and the municipal administrations of La Spezia and Ravenna asked on loan to exhibit it in their cities, soon imitated by the museum. Moscow State Library.

Among the authors present, there are also Jean-Francois Bory, Antonio Bueno, Ugo Carrega, Klaus Groh, Stelio Maria Martini, Magdalo Mussio, Sarenco, Elisabetta Gut, Julien Blaine, Lamberto Pignotti, Luciano Caruso and Adriano Spatola.

The area dedicated to the ex libris was opened in the last months of 1986 to accommodate large collections of authors dating back to the post-war period, with continuous additions over time up to exhibiting works by 50 Italian and 130 foreign artists.

Foro Annonario

The Foro Annonario di Senigallia is a structure located in the city of Senigallia, in the province of Ancona, located in the historic center and a few steps from the central Piazza Roma, as well as very close to the Misa river.

The work was designed in 1834 by the architect Pietro Ghinelli in neoclassical style, who proposed a circular plan on which 24 Doric-style columns arose which support the structure above and form a portico. To build the whole bricks were used.

The history of the construction of the Foro Annonario is included in a time span from 1810 to 1847 and is marked by the drafting of more than ten projects, different from each other but all focused on the idea of ​​a new square as the urban backdrop of the axis of the riverside, parallel to the eighteenth-century Ercolani arcades.

Only in 1835 was the project approved by the architect Pietro Ghinelli (1759-1834), municipal engineer from Senigallia since 1816, a project that envisages a neoclassical building, entirely in exposed brick, consisting of a central body, with references to the plan basilical, and with the function of a fish market, on which two porticoed arms are grafted, lower, such as to form an elliptical square.

The square, which is the heart of the Foro Annonario, is therefore delimited by two colonnades, behind which warehouses and shops open: a complex of 24 columns with Doric-style capitals and a continuous entablature between the two arms and the fish market, this the last characterized on the longitudinal sides by 6 columns and, above the entablature, by 7 semicircular holes.

In 1845, the need to increase military strength in Senigallia led to the decision to raise the two arms of the portico of the Foro Annonario in order to create dormitories for soldiers, commissioning the architect Vincenzo Ghinelli (1792-1871), nephew of Pietro, of the drafting of the project. The new architectural composition, completed in 1847, if on the one hand cancels the pre-eminence of the body of the fish market on the side porticos making the whole complex more volumetrically homogeneous, respects the stylistic features of the neoclassical architecture of the original project, even with the repetition above the entablature holes in a semicircle.

After one hundred and fifty years, since 1998 with the restoration project by the Pisan architects Massimo and Gabriella Carmassi, the old dormitories with exposed roof trusses are used as a space for the municipal library.

As in every city, one or more monument identifies its place, the Forum Annonario is, for the writer, the symbolic building of Senigallia. Its role as an urban place par excellence has remained unchanged since its construction, as today as then it is the center of the daily market, both indoors and in the square, a meeting point, and theatrical background for cultural events and shows, urbanistically a space of extraordinary charm.

Today there is a daily sale of fish (under the portico), fruit and vegetables (in the central square), while in the attic there is the library and the municipal archive.

Church and convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie

The church and convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie are located about three kilometers south-east from the historic center of Senigallia. The complex, owned by the local municipality, is of primary importance for the Miseno territory by virtue of its spiritual function, its artistic value and its centuries-old history, linked in particular to the noblest periods of the city, from the domain of Giovanni Della Oak to the pontificate of Pope Pius IX.

Currently the accessible areas of the complex are only those of the ancient convent, where the pastoral premises of the Catholic parish and the “Sergio Anselmi” sharecropping history museum are located, while the church has been closed to the public since 13 September 2016 due to deterioration of the roof and damage to the internal wall lining.

Instead of the current monumental complex, before 1491 there was a shrine or small church called “Madonna del pinocchio” or “Santa Maria del Pignotto”, whose name probably derived from the fact that the place was surrounded by pine trees. Around it stretched a large forest, then gradually deforested until it was completely replaced by fields, vegetable gardens and buildings, as well as by the city cemetery starting from 1871.

The church and the convent were designed by the architect Baccio Pontelli da Urbino (around 1449-1494) on commission from Giovanni Della Rovere, lord of the city, and built starting from 1491. According to the master book of the convent, kept at the municipal historical archive, the first Friars Minor settled there already in 1492. Subsequently the factory was revised and enlarged, according to the historical testimony of Vasari, by the architect Gerolamo Genga (1476-1551) at the behest of Francesco Maria I Della Rovere, in an intervention started certainly before the latter’s death, which occurred in 1538.

According to the historical testimony of friar Francesco Gonzaga and Bishop Pietro Ridolfi, the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie was built as a vow made by Giovanni Della Rovere for the birth of the much desired male son, Francesco Maria, who was born on 25 March 1490 by his wife Giovanna Di Montefeltro. The historian Francesco Benelli suggests a further motivation: to use the Graces as a mausoleum of the Roveresco family, in imitation of the church of San Bernardino in Urbino by the Montefeltro family. In fact, the brother-in-law Antonello Sanseverino, prince of Salerno, is buried in the church of the Graces before Giovanni; the daughter Girolama; the mother Teodora Manerola.

In September 2008, the Friars Minor, after 515 years of uninterrupted presence, left the pastoral leadership of the Parish, which was taken on by the secular priests of the diocese. The parish uses the part of the now former convent adjacent to the church with the minor cloister for pastoral purposes.

On September 13, 2016, with Ordinance no. 528 signed by the Manager of the Technical Area and Environment Territory and by the Mayor of the Municipality of Senigallia, the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie is closed to safeguard the public and private safety of the visitors. The provision is the result of the serious deterioration of the roof and of injuries to the internal wall lining erected in 1626. Since then, the parish community has no access to the church and is forced to continue its liturgical and pastoral activities in the rooms that remain.

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Bagni di Lucca was a true elite destination for European tourism before the boom of the coasts made us forget this corner of Lucca, which the British called the “Switzerland of Tuscany”. Just the Anglo-Saxons were the first to discover Bagni di Lucca and the therapeutic properties of its waters, loving it to the point of transforming it into a small second home.

Although the Roman presence has left few artifacts, it can be dated back to the 3rd century BC. and more stable in the second century BC, when Lucca became an important Roman colony. The presence of Roman colonists can also be found in the toponymy of the places: Brandeglio, Villa Terenziana, Vico Pancellorum, Lugliano, Palleggio, Vetteglia, Casabasciana, Benabbio, Ponte a Diana, Corsena (with the Centurion plaque), etc.

At the spa, the legend tells of the existence of the cult of Celtic gods protecting the waters, while the presence in the valley of the cult of Diana is testified by its temple, above which the church of San Cassiano di Controni was built.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the valley also underwent barbarian invasions, which caused unspeakable suffering for the populations. The dominion of the Lombards since 570 and the subsequent union of the Roman population with the Germans led to the repopulation of mountain areas considered healthier and more defensible.

With the conversion to Christianity in 603 there will be the ecclesiastical divisions of the area still in force (pieve dei Monti di Villa “Villa Terenziana”, pieve di Controni, pieve di Vico Pancellorum, pieve di Casabasciana).

The division into domains of powerful consortiums of Lombard origin will dominate until the advent of the Franks and the division into fiefdoms will remain unchanged until the penetration of the Municipality of Lucca into the valley.

Bagni di Lucca became “summer capital and flagship” of the Lucca state.

The restoration, with the Bourbons, and above all with the duchy of Carlo Ludovico from 1826 to 1847, will project Bagni di Lucca to the level of tourist-spa resort of first importance in Europe.

Let’s start our tour in this unique and enchanting town!

Lucca Thermal Baths

The city of Lucca enjoys the proximity of the thermal baths of Lucca Thermal Baths, a popular spa town just 25 km from the historic center. Immersed in the natural landscape, the spas are located on the Tuscan Apennines in a privileged position where the Serchio river and the Lima torrent flow, whose waters containing bicarbonate sulphate and calcium have curative as well as beneficial purposes.

The hyper-thermal waters of Lucca Thermal Baths gush out at a temperature of 45 ° C and have an anti-inflammatory and relaxing effect. There is a thermal pool, whose waters flow from the thermal spring of the Doccione at 54 ° C and a wellness center that offers the possibility of following various treatments including mud, massages, face / body and anti-aging services.

The thermal springs were already known in medieval times for their therapeutic properties but acquired importance in the national and international panorama after the French Revolution thanks to Elisa Baciocchi, Napoleon’s sister, who made Bagni di Lucca one of the reference points of life worldly.

During the Belle Epoque period and at the beginning of the twentieth century, the spas of Lucca hosted numerous illustrious figures such as Pascoli, Shelley, Byron, Puccini and Henry James

Today, the baths of Lucca Thermal Baths are intact compared to the course of time, restoration interventions have only required a modernization of the lighting that accompanies the visitor in a suggestive way in the passages of the caves.

The center of Lucca Thermal Baths is in fact divided into two establishments, the Terme di Jean Varraud and Casa Boccella, where professionals treat vascular, respiratory and rheumatic diseases.

The presence of the wellness center also allows a perfect remise en forme to tone, relax and purify the body with mud, massages and treatments of specific oils and creams in an atmosphere of hospitality and welcome.

Royal Casino

This is the first real land-based casino in Italy and the oldest in Europe: the Royal Casino of Bagni di Lucca.

It was perhaps even the first casino in history. We are talking about the Bagni di Lucca Royal Casino.

We will tell you about its rise and subsequent decline, until its closure over sixty years ago, when the concession expired. But it did not end there in fact the hall was then reopened twice more recently.

Today the Royal Casino of Bagni di Lucca operates as a gambling museum and as an automated room with many gaming devices. Without a doubt, an excellent reason to consider combining your passion for discoveries and travel with that for gambling and its history.

So, let’s see everything about this historic gambling house and then move on to what else the city of Lucca offers for a hypothetical holiday between play, relaxation and culture.

Champion of Italy, Sanremo, Saint Vincent and Venice. We are used to thinking of these four cities, when it comes to casinos in Italy but history tells us more because these popular names were not the only gambling halls in our area, and according to some historians not even the first. This title, in fact, would belong to the Bagni di Lucca Casino which, according to many historians, would be not only the first Italian casino, but even the first real casino ever to exist.

One of the first European Casinos inaugurated in 1839, built by two French entrepreneurs, Adrien Mathis and Edouard Ginnestet who obtained the gambling rights from the Duke of Lucca Carlo Lodovico in exchange for the construction.

The Games of the time were: Pharaoh, at the Royal, at the Biribisso (the ancient roulette), but there were also dance parties, literary and musical academies, but not only quarrels, duel challenges between nobles and adventurers. Today some of these games have been rebuilt from the Vicariate of Lima and can be tried during their demonstrations.

In 1847, the Duchy of Lucca passed to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Grand Duke Leopoldo prohibited gambling.

Today, the casino is used for parties, conferences, exhibitions, and weddings. Its frescoed walls and its chandeliers make the photos unique.

The Academic Theater

The Academic Theater was built in 1790 by some citizens established in the Accademia dei Provvidi. During the nineteenth century, the theater hosted both lyrical and prose plays of primary importance.

With the fading of interest both towards the spa town and towards theatrical performances, the theater was sold by the Academy to the Municipality and in 1934 underwent several works for its transformation into a cinema, including the realization of the projection booth on the stage above the real one.

After the Second World War the theater was closed, thus beginning a long period of abandonment, interrupted by the restoration undertaken in 1980 on a project by the engineer Lisandro Gambogi of Lucca and now concluded.

From 1987 until 1997 the cultural association “Il Teatraccio” managed the theater, organizing the winter prose season and many other events before it returned to full management to the municipal administration.

The theater, which presents the typical forms of Italian theater (ovoid-shaped stalls with 29 stages divided into two orders and a loggia) can be used as a space for prose and opera performances, for concerts and cultural encounters.

Today it has been used for the Prose Season and has hosted the Teatro Scuola project in the spring for 26 years, becoming a place of exchange and education for students from all over Italy.

Villa Ada

Villa Ada was born on a late Renaissance structure owned by the Lucca family De Nobili, it was completely renovated in the nineteenth century, by Sir Mac Bean, British consul in Livorno, and at the same time the two high hexagonal towers were built that give the villa its characteristic appearance.

The building is surrounded by a large park of romantic taste, enriched by artificial limestone caves, wrought iron railings in the shape of intertwined branches, and other typical furnishing elements of the time. A path, which starts from the terrace near the villa, leads to a pergola continuing towards an artificial cave.

The villa, purchased in 1975 by the Municipality of Bagni di Lucca, was used as a spa treatment facility. To date, however, the villa is abandoned, with obvious structural problems due to poor maintenance of the property. Even the garden and the cave are paying the carelessness of the entire property. In the second half of the 90s the villa was rented to the global village which used it for spa treatments and receptions.

Restoration work began, with the painting of the villa. Interrupted almost immediately, the villa remained in disuse for years and was often used as a home by some homeless people in the area. Finally closed, the villa had been entrusted to the Vicaria Val di Lima who took care of the garden, until the contract expired, even if the entire structure would need an imposing restoration.

The villa, surrounded by a splendid park of romantic taste, is presented today as the result of overlapping of successive construction periods. The property, once used as a spa, by virtue of its characteristics and its location, is well suited to be used as a tourist-accommodation facility.

Villa Fiori

The Villa, which takes its name from Baron Fiori its first owner, represents one of the most valuable examples of neoclassical architecture. Built in the second half of the 19th century, it is now in a state of neglect. It is only rarely open for some events.

The property, which previously belonged to the Northwest Tuscany Local Health Unit, was acquired in 2008 by the municipal authority in exchange for the premises of the former Ferretti primary school. From that moment, however, a real via crucis began for Villa Fiori, which has so far not seen anyone interested in its purchase

The villa was built in the second half of the 19th century, and it is a fine architectural example with neoclassical and neo-Gothic elements, the result of stylistic reinterpretations of the early 1900s.

The property, surrounded by a beautiful garden designed according to the particular position it occupies on a bend in the Lima stream, enjoys a splendid view of the entire surrounding valley.

The property can be used as a tourist-accommodation facility with the possibility of further buildings.

The Chain Bridge

The Chain Bridge is a bridge over the Lima River located in Fornoli, a hamlet of Bagni di Lucca.

It was built from 1844 to 1860 on commission from the Duke of Lucca Carlo Ludovico di Borbone and designed by Lorenzo Nottolini. It was a futuristic work for the time. The Duke literally imposed it on his royal architect who, before drafting the project, had to personally visit similar architectures made in England.

The work is based on the innovative use of industrial iron techniques, through suspension with chains, and on a complex underground mechanism that keeps chains themselves under tension.

However, this did not prevent the design of a work that met the aesthetic criteria of the then dominant classicism, with the two triumphal arches located at the ends of the bridge.

It suffered serious damage during the Second World War, the entire planking ended in the river, but after the end of the war in 1953 it was rebuilt according to the original design.

The structure of the bridge, with its large panoramic terraces that give access to the walkway, is designed so as to make it also a meeting and social life point for the country, not just a way to cross the stream.

The work is based on the innovative use of industrial iron techniques, through suspension with chains and on a complex underground mechanism that keeps the chains in tension.

The bridge has two triumphal arches at the two ends with as many as 16 niches in which it is unknown what was to be placed later. From Nottolini’s design it also appears that above the two bases that hide the chains, two lions had to be placed, one on the right and the other on the left.

The walkway, once driveway, is made of wooden plank. The chains pass inside two openings in the arches where there are rollers on which they slide, then descend to enter two stone bases located on the terraces and then disappear into the underground floor where they are anchored.

On the Chifenti side the chains are only anchored to stone and iron pillars, and can be viewed only by lifting the lid of the bases, while on the side of Fornoli, under the bridge there is an iron gate that enters the stone base at the height of the river, inside there are tunnels that lead to a compartment where the chains are anchored with a device that keeps them in traction.

The central span of the chains supports the planking of the bridge itself by means of iron tie rods called stays which have at their ends an inverted anchor anchored to the chains which are double, two internal coupled and the other two on the two sides, the stay in its length passes in the supporting beam by drilling it and by means of a slot, always in iron, surrounds the beam supporting it. Above these beams rests a wooden plank and the walking surface.

The bridge today has a wooden and iron handrail, but this detail was added only after the complete renovation in 2003 with the intervention of the Province of Lucca and with the contribution of the World Monument Found American Express.

The Chain Bridge is the first bridge made of iron and wood in Italy.

The starting date of the works makes it one of the oldest still existing iron bridges in continental Europe.

Ponte della Maddalena

The Ponte della Maddalena (called Devil’s Bridge) crosses the Serchio river near Borgo a Mozzano, in the province of Lucca.

As a result of its shape, its taller, wider, and particular arch, almost inhuman, this pearl of engineering is the subject of many tales.

The construction of a bridge connecting the two banks of the Serchio is due to the will of the Countess Matilde di Canossa between the eleventh and twelfth centuries, but the current features are due to the remaking of Castruccio Castracani, lord of Lucca at the beginning of the 14th century.

The construction of the bridge dates back to the times of the Countess Matilde of Canossa, who lived at the turn of the year 1000 and who had great influence and power over the whole Garfagnana.

The current structure, however, is due to the reconstruction carried out by Castruccio Castracani, leader and lord of nearby Lucca, in the early 1300s. The appearance of the bridge is the classic medieval one called “humpback”, higher in the central point of the arch.

But the Devil’s Bridge offers itself with a substantial difference which here becomes a unique feature: its arches are asymmetrical and the central one is so high and wide that its solidity seems a challenge to the law of gravity.

It is called Ponte della Maddalena because of an Oratory that was located at the foot of the structure on the left bank of the Serchio river.

The bridge, although with called Ponte della Maddalena, is commonly identified as the “Devil’s Bridge”. Like many other enterprises that seemed impossible to the contemporaries, popular legend attributes the construction to the devil, who is then cheated in various ways.

The legend tells of the chief mason engaged in the construction of the bridge who was very worried about the delay accumulated in the same work, given the continuous and impetuous floods of the river. One evening in despair he began to pronounce sacrileges such as to evoke Satan. Then the devil told the master builder that he would complete the work himself in one night in exchange for the first soul to cross the bridge; chief mason accepted, and construction was completed. The foreman, desperate for the imminence of the heavy tribute to the devil, ran to the parish priest of the town, who, having heard the confession, devised a stratagem: he made a dog cross the bridge.

The devil, enraged by the shrewd gesture, took it and threw himself into the waters of the river without ever seeing him again. It is also said that the dog, a completely white Maremma shepherd, occasionally sees himself walking on the bridge in the last evenings of October and that he represents the devil who still seeks the soul of the foreman. It is also said to be able to observe the petrified body of the poor animal on the bottom of the river. arious alterations, remained intact at least until 1836 when a violent flood of the Serchio caused serious damage.

At the beginning of 1900, a new arch was opened in the part ending in the west for the passage of the Lucca-Aulla railway, heavily modifying its original shape.

Best places to see in Senigallia, the town with a long velvet beach

Senigallia is an Italian town of 44.464 inhabitants in the province of Ancona in the Marche, second in the province by number of inhabitants after the capital, as well as the sixth most populated in the region.

It is one of the main tourist resorts of the Marche region, attracting visitors from all over Italy and Europe.

Its territory is mainly flat but surrounded by hills sloping down towards the sea; the historic center follows the urban layout of the Roman city which was founded on a hill south of the Misa river.

Senigallia was founded between 389 and 383 BC from the Gallic tribe of the Senoni who had settled in the north of the Marche up to the valley of the river Esino, in the current province of Ancona: probably the choice, made according to legend by the chief tribe Brenno, was dictated by the presence of a low hill facing the sea and dominating the existing ford. From here, defined the “capital” of the Gauls in Italy, at the head of Brenno they moved against Rome, winning their armies and withdrawing only after paying a heavy tribute.

Since 1997 Senigallia has been continuously awarded the Blue Flag, the recognition that the FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education) gives to places that guarantee the quality of bathing water, attention to environmental management, information to the user, services and safety on the beach.

Senigallia boasts a long beach, the velvet beach, spacious and deep, ideal for family holidays. The seabed slopes gently and also allow children to dive without fear. The Blue Flag is the guarantee of water quality and virtuous environmental management.

Senigallia is one of the most sought-after seaside tourism centers on the Adriatic coast with over 13 km of golden sand. Available to holiday-makers accommodation for all tastes, from 5-star hotels to low-cost camping.

And then bathing establishments, bars, restaurants, pizzerias, pubs, discos to satisfy every need, even that of children.

Let’s start our visit in this amazing Italian town!

Rocca Roveresca

The Rocca di Senigallia, also known as Rocca Roveresca, named after the clients, Della Rovere, is located in Senigallia, in the Marche region, in the province of Ancona and is one of the most important monuments in the city. The Rocca, owned by the Italian State, already being delivered to the Superintendency for the Architectural Heritage and Landscape of the Marche region, has been part of the assets managed by the Marche Museum Center since December 2014. It is one of the most visited monuments in the region and hosts exhibitions, musical and artistic events. In 2015 it registered 46.090 visitors.

Rocca Roveresca is an essential stop in visiting the city of Senigallia. The Rocca can be defined as an extraordinary history book: in fact, it is the result of the overlap of defensive structures that have followed over the centuries, since the origins of the city, in a site of decisive strategic importance.

Over time, towers and bastions have been added to the defensive structure since the Roman foundation of the city: the remains of the 14th century Rocchetta built by Egidio Albornoz are still visible, behind which the Rocca di Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta (1450) was built in 1450.

The current structure of the monument is due to Giovanni della Rovere, lord of Senigallia, and son-in-law of Federico III da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino. It was precisely Duke Federico who made the best architects of the time available to Giovanni: Luciano Laurana and Baccio Pontelli. The intervention began in 1478 with the aim of adapting the fortress to new defensive needs. In 1503 the fortress was conquered by Cesare Borgia who in Senigallia made the famous massacre described by Niccolò Machiavelli.

The Rocca Roveresca is unique in its kind because it was not only a fortress, but also a stately home, home to an artillery school founded by Guidubaldo della Rovere in 1533; the ducal dynasty became extinct, after the return of the city under the dominion of the Church in 1631, it was a papal prison and an orphanage.

Today it hosts art exhibitions and prestigious cultural events.

Palazzo del Duca

Palazzo del Duca is one of the most representative historical buildings in the city of Senigallia (AN), in the Marche region.

The structure, formerly the representative residence of the Della Rovere and their guests since the 16th century, stands in front of the Rocca Roveresca, on the longest side of the homonymous square which served as a courtyard.

Wanted by Guidobaldo II della Rovere, the work was then completed by Francesco Maria II. Girolamo Genga’s design was concluded in the second half of the 16th century.

Inside, a splendid coffered ceiling attributed to Taddeo Zuccari embellishes the Throne Room. The forty-nine chests of drawers were probably made between 1553 and 1555 and recall joyful, cheerful, festive atmospheres. But you can also notice irony and satire about political and cultural power: the master Zuccari paints carnival themes showing an imaginary upside down world, where children, represented by putti, rule over adults, and the poor over the rich. Also in the Throne Room there is also a genealogical tree on paper of the Della Rovere family.

The building overlooks the homonymous square, whose name refers instead to Giovanni Della Rovere. The square has unique characteristics for the Renaissance period: no religious building overlooks it and the so-called Fountain of the Ducks (or Lions) is located in a decentralized position, thus confirming the military use of this space.

The fountain, built between 1599 and 1602, was commissioned by Francesco Maria II della Rovere to remind the population of the rehabilitation of the Saline marshland.

Ducks symbolize the poultry fauna present in the wetland, while the water features represent the control of the waters, once carriers of diseases and now a symbol of prosperity.

Ercolani Arcades

Ercolani Arcades, which line the right bank of the Misa with a suggestive sequence of one hundred and twenty-six arches in Istrian stone, were built to welcome the many merchants who arrived in the city in July on the occasion of the famous Frankish Fair of La Maddalena.

Ercolani Arcades replace the walls of the ancient fortress city which no longer has any reason to exist and are the symbol of the new market town.

The arcades testify a period of great splendour for Senigallia and the work is undoubtedly one of the major characteristics of the city. Monsignor Giuseppe Ercolani (1677-1759), who designed them in the mid-eighteenth century by the will of Pope Benedict XIV, aka Prospero Lambertini, is remembered in the name, with the aim of hosting the famous Franca Fair in continuous expansion.

Ercolani Arcades are still the place designated for trade, in fact they fill up with colors and stalls during the three days of the Sant’Agostino fair (from 28 to 30 August) and every Thursday for the weekly market. Nothing to do, however, with the golden days of the Maddalena fair, when the flow of merchants was so high that the arcades seemed to be insufficient to contain them all.

These blocks of white stone (from Istria) constitute the 126 majestic arches that rest on square pillars, following the course of the Misa river before the waters disperse into the Adriatic Sea.

Originally, they should have also extended to the left bank, but this idea was abandoned due to the excessive cost of the works.

Church of the Cross

The Church of the Cross is a sacred building in Senigallia dating back to 1608, built on the wishes of the Confraternity of the Sacrament and of the Cross near the central Piazza Roma.

The late Renaissance exterior contrasts with the Baroque interior, characterized by six lateral altars surrounding the altarpiece of the Carriage of Christ at the tomb of Federico Barocci, located above the main altar.

Designed by the ducal architect Muzio Oddi, the Church was consecrated in 1608 on behalf of the Confraternity of the Sacrament and the Cross active in assisting the neediest. The original idea was in fact to make it an oratory for the confreres, and its structure recalls more a room than a church.

The present decorations are admirable, including stuccos, golds, six side altars and the unusual coffered ceiling, a masterpiece of shades between gold and bronze. This small and precious church houses numerous works of art including a authentic jewel: the Altarpiece painted by Federico Barocci in 1592 representing The Burial of Christ.

The painting depicts Christ brought to the tomb by Giuseppe d’Arimatea and Nicodemo, almost an ideal continuation of the “Deposition”, previously painted for the Cathedral of Perugia. In the background the Monte Calvario and the Ducal Palace of Urbino.

Among the side altars, the one dedicated to Santa Barbara stands out, with two cannon barrels to frame the painting of the saint, patron, among other things, of the bombers who had a training school at the Rocca Roveresca.

The main altar has a sumptuous tabernacle with golden embroidery in floral bas-relief and cherubs. Six other altars are arranged on the sides and contain 17th and 18th century works. The ceiling has an extraordinary square coffered decoration, enriched with arabesques and a central band with the symbols of the Cross and the Eucharist, the coat of arms of the Confraternity of the Sacrament and the Cross. In addition to the statue of the dead Christ, a work made of wood dated XVII, you can admire a backdrop of Barocci “The transport of the dead Christ to the sepulcher” and 4 works by the Senigallian painter Giovanni Anastasi (“The nativity”, “The adoration of the magi “,” The Nunciating angel “and” The virgin Annunziata “).

Museum of modern art, information, and photography

The museum of modern art, information and photography – MUSINF is a museum established in 1981 in order to document the history of the relationship between word and image in information, up to the most recent forms of copy art, visual poetry, computer art, fax art. The structure is located in a building near the La Fenice theater, founded in 1981 by the Municipality on the advice of the critic Carlo Emanuele Bugatti and with the approval of the artists Virgilio Guidi, Umberto Mastroianni and Orfeo Tamburi.

The museum, to which various artists have given their works, documents the history of the relationship between word and image in information, up to the most recent forms of copy art, visual poetry, ex libris and mail art, positioning itself between the main Italian centers for the documentation of contemporary art, engraving and photography.

The section dedicated to photography contains over 1,700 images donated by more than 50 artists. Particular attention was given to the Photographic Association Misa (to which photographers such as Ferruccio Ferroni and Piergiorgio Branzi joined), born in Senigallia thanks to Giuseppe Cavalli, and to the 250 photos of Mario Giacomelli dating back to the fifties.

The collection includes 350 xerography, 11 volumes and other material from the Xeros-Art of Milan, also exhibited in 1988 at the Ancona fair, exhibited with the title of Electroworks and in which they exhibited some of the most important artists of international copy art such as Julien Blaine, Guglielmo Achille Cavellini, Emilio Morandi, Bruno Munari, Clemente Padin, Pierre Restany, Daniele Sasson.

The origins of the archive dedicated to this branch of the Avant-garde are due to the artists Eugenio Miccini and Mirella Bentivoglio, who first donated some of their works. In a short time, about 200 other personalities (including foreigners) from the sector did the same, including the Italian Institute of New York University, and the municipal administrations of La Spezia and Ravenna asked on loan to exhibit it in their cities, soon imitated by the museum. Moscow State Library.

Among the authors present, there are also Jean-Francois Bory, Antonio Bueno, Ugo Carrega, Klaus Groh, Stelio Maria Martini, Magdalo Mussio, Sarenco, Elisabetta Gut, Julien Blaine, Lamberto Pignotti, Luciano Caruso and Adriano Spatola.

The area dedicated to the ex libris was opened in the last months of 1986 to accommodate large collections of authors dating back to the post-war period, with continuous additions over time up to exhibiting works by 50 Italian and 130 foreign artists.

Foro Annonario

The Foro Annonario di Senigallia is a structure located in the city of Senigallia, in the province of Ancona, located in the historic center and a few steps from the central Piazza Roma, as well as very close to the Misa river.

The work was designed in 1834 by the architect Pietro Ghinelli in neoclassical style, who proposed a circular plan on which 24 Doric-style columns arose which support the structure above and form a portico. To build the whole bricks were used.

The history of the construction of the Foro Annonario is included in a time span from 1810 to 1847 and is marked by the drafting of more than ten projects, different from each other but all focused on the idea of ​​a new square as the urban backdrop of the axis of the riverside, parallel to the eighteenth-century Ercolani arcades.

Only in 1835 was the project approved by the architect Pietro Ghinelli (1759-1834), municipal engineer from Senigallia since 1816, a project that envisages a neoclassical building, entirely in exposed brick, consisting of a central body, with references to the plan basilical, and with the function of a fish market, on which two porticoed arms are grafted, lower, such as to form an elliptical square.

The square, which is the heart of the Foro Annonario, is therefore delimited by two colonnades, behind which warehouses and shops open: a complex of 24 columns with Doric-style capitals and a continuous entablature between the two arms and the fish market, this the last characterized on the longitudinal sides by 6 columns and, above the entablature, by 7 semicircular holes.

In 1845, the need to increase military strength in Senigallia led to the decision to raise the two arms of the portico of the Foro Annonario in order to create dormitories for soldiers, commissioning the architect Vincenzo Ghinelli (1792-1871), nephew of Pietro, of the drafting of the project. The new architectural composition, completed in 1847, if on the one hand cancels the pre-eminence of the body of the fish market on the side porticos making the whole complex more volumetrically homogeneous, respects the stylistic features of the neoclassical architecture of the original project, even with the repetition above the entablature holes in a semicircle.

After one hundred and fifty years, since 1998 with the restoration project by the Pisan architects Massimo and Gabriella Carmassi, the old dormitories with exposed roof trusses are used as a space for the municipal library.

As in every city, one or more monument identifies its place, the Forum Annonario is, for the writer, the symbolic building of Senigallia. Its role as an urban place par excellence has remained unchanged since its construction, as today as then it is the center of the daily market, both indoors and in the square, a meeting point, and theatrical background for cultural events and shows, urbanistically a space of extraordinary charm.

Today there is a daily sale of fish (under the portico), fruit and vegetables (in the central square), while in the attic there is the library and the municipal archive.

Church and convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie

The church and convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie are located about three kilometers south-east from the historic center of Senigallia. The complex, owned by the local municipality, is of primary importance for the Miseno territory by virtue of its spiritual function, its artistic value and its centuries-old history, linked in particular to the noblest periods of the city, from the domain of Giovanni Della Oak to the pontificate of Pope Pius IX.

Currently the accessible areas of the complex are only those of the ancient convent, where the pastoral premises of the Catholic parish and the “Sergio Anselmi” sharecropping history museum are located, while the church has been closed to the public since 13 September 2016 due to deterioration of the roof and damage to the internal wall lining.

Instead of the current monumental complex, before 1491 there was a shrine or small church called “Madonna del pinocchio” or “Santa Maria del Pignotto”, whose name probably derived from the fact that the place was surrounded by pine trees. Around it stretched a large forest, then gradually deforested until it was completely replaced by fields, vegetable gardens and buildings, as well as by the city cemetery starting from 1871.

The church and the convent were designed by the architect Baccio Pontelli da Urbino (around 1449-1494) on commission from Giovanni Della Rovere, lord of the city, and built starting from 1491. According to the master book of the convent, kept at the municipal historical archive, the first Friars Minor settled there already in 1492. Subsequently the factory was revised and enlarged, according to the historical testimony of Vasari, by the architect Gerolamo Genga (1476-1551) at the behest of Francesco Maria I Della Rovere, in an intervention started certainly before the latter’s death, which occurred in 1538.

According to the historical testimony of friar Francesco Gonzaga and Bishop Pietro Ridolfi, the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie was built as a vow made by Giovanni Della Rovere for the birth of the much desired male son, Francesco Maria, who was born on 25 March 1490 by his wife Giovanna Di Montefeltro. The historian Francesco Benelli suggests a further motivation: to use the Graces as a mausoleum of the Roveresco family, in imitation of the church of San Bernardino in Urbino by the Montefeltro family. In fact, the brother-in-law Antonello Sanseverino, prince of Salerno, is buried in the church of the Graces before Giovanni; the daughter Girolama; the mother Teodora Manerola.

In September 2008, the Friars Minor, after 515 years of uninterrupted presence, left the pastoral leadership of the Parish, which was taken on by the secular priests of the diocese. The parish uses the part of the now former convent adjacent to the church with the minor cloister for pastoral purposes.

On September 13, 2016, with Ordinance no. 528 signed by the Manager of the Technical Area and Environment Territory and by the Mayor of the Municipality of Senigallia, the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie is closed to safeguard the public and private safety of the visitors. The provision is the result of the serious deterioration of the roof and of injuries to the internal wall lining erected in 1626. Since then, the parish community has no access to the church and is forced to continue its liturgical and pastoral activities in the rooms that remain.

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It is the sixth municipality in Liguria by number of inhabitants, preceded by Genoa, La Spezia, Savona, Sanremo and Imperia.

Traditionally, there are two different ways of indicating the inhabitants of the city: the Rapallini (Rapallin in the Genoese dialect), those who are natives of Rapallo and the Rapallesi those who simply reside in the Ligurian city; the dialectal term ruentini, better known in the Tigullio and Genoese areas, can instead be connected almost exclusively to the historic football club Rapallo Ruentes.

The town is famous for having been the seat of two important peace treaties, after the First World War, one between the Kingdom of Italy and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1920 and the other between the Weimar Republic and the Soviet Union in 1922.

The city also has the unworthy merit of being the mother of the term rapallization, synonymous with wild and indiscriminate urbanization.

Let’s start our tour in this picturesque maritime town!

Castle of Rapallo

The Castle stands on a rock that juts out towards the sea, near the elegant Vittorio Veneto promenade; the fortification was strongly desired by the inhabitants of the town following the sudden incursion of the pirate Torghud, better known as Dragut, who stormed the center in 1549, sowing terror and devastation and capturing women and children who were brought to Algiers suffering from indescribable suffering.

Used for a long time as a prison, it has been restored, and is now a prestigious venue for exhibitions and conferences.

The castle is also called medieval castle with an incorrect definition since the construction dates back only to the second half of the 16th century.

The Castle is also the protagonist of the main event of the city patronal feasts: every year, on the 3rd of July, on the last evening of the celebrations in honour of the appearance of Our Lady  of Montallegro, the Castle is the starting point of the fireworks display called “the shot of the boys”, at the end of which it is artificially set on fire.

The effect of the white pyrotechnic waterfall that descends into the sea from its roof and the red smoke that comes out of its windows is unique in the world.

Inside, there is also a small chapel dedicated to San Gaetano built in 1688 with the characteristic dome with bell, clearly visible outside the castle.

It is the symbol of the Rapallo town and has been declared an Italian national monument by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage.

The castle changed over time for extensions and different destinations: in the seventeenth century it was used as the home of the captain of the city.

It was therefore a prison and then the headquarters of the Guardia di Finanza, until it was purchased by the Municipality in 1959 and transformed into an exhibition venue, further enhanced, and enlarged by the restorations of 1997 and, subsequently, of 2005.

Punta Pagana Tower

A few minutes from the center of Rapallo, immersed in the green of the Mediterranean scrub and overlooking the blue sea of Liguria, a Saracen tower dating from the sixteenth century stands on top of a promontory, which still retains original spaces and fittings.

Between San Michele di Pagana and the beach of Prelo emerges a promontory covered with maritime pines, among which one of the few Ligurian Saracen towers not nestled in houses or debased by improper uses nestles.

Erected in the second half of the sixteenth century, the Tower, a massive stone sentry with guard functions, is a document of a time when the Ligurian coasts were continually running the danger of raiding corsair ships.

The tragic and sudden landing of the morning of 4 July 1549, with the subsequent pirate assault on Rapallo by the Turkish admiral Dragut, prompted the frightened inhabitants of San Michele to ask that the village be put in greater safety.

A contribution of 600 lire was set for the construction of the Tower on 16 May 1562 by the mayor of Rapallo Gerolamo Giustiniani on the advice of the Senate of the Republic of Genoa.

In the 80s the tower was donated to FAI (Italian Environmental Fund), which decided to restore it and take care of the survival of the arboreal species of the context. The conservative restoration works restored the “bombarda room” on the roof, rediscovered the original brick-laid floor and preserved and integrated the seventeenth-century external plasters.

Today, the promontory and the tower of Punta Pagana represent a true corner of peace available to anyone wishing to undertake a serene incursion between nature and history enjoying the pleasant view of the sea.

The Church of San Michele di Pagana

Famous for hosting a canvas by the famous Flemish painter Van Dyck, the church of San Michele di Pagana, a hamlet of Rapallo overlooking the sea on the road to Santa Margherita Ligure, actually houses many works of art; some are visible and others are held in the oratory.

The parish church stands on a hill above the bays of Trelo and Prelo. The oldest news dates back to July 1133, and is found engraved on a small plaque on the right wall of the church.

Tradition has it that the temple was erected on a pre-existing pagan building from which the toponym San Michele di Pagana would derive. The temple remained in its original form for several centuries, although it likely suffered damage in 1432, when the Venetian fleet stormed the Tigullio.

A complete transformation was started at the end of the sixteenth century and lasted for some decades: the decision of the Genoese Senate of 1604, which authorized the disbursement for a three-year period of 250 lire per year to the inhabitants of Pagana, is also confirmed they had pointed out how ruinous their church is and lately the bell tower has shown signs of having to be ruined and the rectory is almost completely uninhabitable.

New changes to the church were made between 1749 and ill 1793. Today the interior, with a single nave, preserves on the main altar a precious wooden crucifix of the Maragliano school.

Two side altars are dedicated to Christ on the cross and to the Madonna of the Rosary. The Marquis Spinola have contributed over time to the internal enrichment of the church by donating, in addition to two Flemish tablets of the fifteenth century, paintings of great value attributed to Guido Reni, Guercino, Luca Giordano and other famous painters of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

The noble Francesco Orero in 1643 donated the famous Christ, by Van Dyck, which the Flemish artist would have painted during his stay in San Michele between 1621 and 1624.

The canvas portrays the penitent donor kneeling under the cross with next to San Francesco and San Bernardo, who intercede for him.

Sanctuary of 0ur Lady of Montallegro

The sanctuary of Our Lady of Montallegro is a Catholic place of worship located in the hamlet of Montallegro in the municipality of Rapallo, in the metropolitan city of Genoa. The building is located on a hill at about 612 m.

Considered among the main Marian sanctuaries of the Genoese metropolitan area and Liguria, it was built by the Rapallese population between 1557 and 1558, together with the annexed shelter for pilgrims, after the apparition of the Virgin Mary on 2 July 1557 to the farmer Giovanni Chichizola. The current marble facade dates back to the renovation carried out by the Milanese architect Luigi Rovelli during 1896, and inaugurated with a solemn ceremony on June 21 of that year.

The Lady  of Montallegro has been the patron saint of the City of Rapallo since 1739, the year in which she was elected as patron saint of the Rapallo community, and of the parishes of Santa Margherita Ligure .This recognition is reproduced on the municipal coat of arms which, from 28 November 1948 bears a letter “M” placed in the center of the two griffins supporting the royal crown.

Together with the Madonna dell’Orto – who appeared in Chiavari on 2 July 1610- she is co-patron of the diocese of Chiavari, the latter erected with the papal bull of Leo XIII on 3 December 1892. The religious hymn of Our Lady of Montallegro, entitled Splende al alto, was composed and set to music by the master and priest Giovanni Battista Campodonico.

According to local tradition, the Virgin appeared in the early afternoon of Friday 2 July 1557 to the farmer Giovanni Chichizola, originally from San Giacomo di Canevale, a hamlet in the municipality of Fontanino di Coreglia Ligure, returning from the fruit and vegetable market of Genoa. Arrived in the Rapallo hinterland, in the wooded properties of the Della Torre Ghibelline family, at the height of Mount Letho (known by locals as “mount of death” or “of death” due to the numerous raids by brigands), the man – tired from the long journey on foot and exhausted by the heat – fell asleep near a spur of rock.

Suddenly, he was aroused by a flash: a “lady dressed in blue and white and with a graceful and gentle appearance” appeared to the farmer, as he later reported to the first commoners and to the civil and religious authorities who had come to the mountain.

The local belief, passed down orally, wants numerous historical events that happened in Rapallo to be linked to “miraculous interventions” of the Our Lady of Montallegro. Among the miracles mentioned most there is that of the liberation of the Rapallo village from the plague in the seventeenth century and from cholera during the nineteenth century.

Cableway Sanctuary of Our Lady of Montallegro

It is the only ropeway system of this type active in Liguria.

The Rapallo-Montallegro Cableway Anonymous Company was officially established on March 31, 1928 in order to connect Rapallo with the sanctuary of Montallegro, parallel to the planned carriage road. Two years later the works for the construction of the plant were commissioned to the company Agudio di Leinì (Turin) specialized in the construction of cableway installations. The inauguration took place on August 29, 1934, but for the definitive opening to the public, the works were completed, it took place only on September 1, 1935.

Over the years, there were several adjustments and maintenance interventions: in 1951 the braking systems, trolleys and cabs were modified. The latter were replaced in 1956 with others of the same capacity. Still in 1959 safety devices were installed and, in 1964, the capacity of the cabins themselves was reduced. Other minor interventions occurred in 1969 and 1971.

After the forty-year concession expired in 1975, the cable car was suspended on January 10, 1976; the exhibiting company was declared bankrupt, the following year, by the Chiavari court.

The plant was abandoned until April 1983, when the restoration works began, according to the project presented by Piemonte Cableways. Rebuilt pylons, trolleys and ropes replaced, the system, radically renewed, reopened in 1984; the exercise was managed directly by the Municipality of Rapallo, to which, in 1994, the cooperative Co.fa.sa. which reactivated the exercise on October 8, 1995.

Further management changes occurred in 1999, when it was entrusted to TPT, Tigullio Pubblici Trasporti (which managed the cableway through the Custodi Automobili Cooperative of Genoa) and, in the early 2000s, during which TPT was succeeded by the Security Control of Trieste.

The valley station is located in Piazzale Solari, in the Betti district in Rapallo, and the mountain station just below the sanctuary, at an altitude of about 600 m over sea level.

The pulling rope is 5,000 m long; the horizontal length of the system is equal to 2,275 m (inclined length 2,345 m) for a vertical drop of 600 meters. The plant has two cabins, numbered 1 and 2, both with a capacity of 24 + 1 people. With a flow rate of 144 people / hour, the journey time is 8 minutes.

The plant operates all year except for the months dedicated to maintenance, typically November and January. In the summer of 2018, following a successful test, evening openings were organized in which the cable car was, for the first time in its history, put into operation in the evening.

Monastery of Santa Maria in Valle Christi

The monastery of Santa Maria in Valle Christi was a Catholic place of worship located in the hamlet of San Massimo, in via San Massimo, in the municipality of Rapallo in the metropolitan city of Genoa. The former thirteenth-century monastic complex is included in the list of Italian national monuments; it is one of the few surviving examples of Gothic architecture in the whole Ligurian territory.

It was inserted in the list of Italian national monuments. It is one of the few examples of Gothic architecture in Liguria, and in fact it almost seems to be in front of a Scottish monument even if, at the same time, the ruins are to define the circuit of a golf course in which it is mystically inserted.

The monastery has its roots in 1204, at the behest of two Genoese noblewomen who had the desire for a place of peace away from the struggles between the factions of Genoa. The abbey belonged first to the Cistercian nuns and then to the Poor Clares of Saint Augustine until, in the second half of the sixteenth century, it was deconsecrated and intended for residential and agricultural use.

The architecture, typical of the French Gothic with a single nave, is characterized by the high Romanesque bell tower with the octagonal spire. You can admire the scenic remains of the church consisting of the still intact flat-bottomed apse and the transept with its chapels. The conventual body, very decayed, was three floors and had to include a ground floor for agricultural use with cellars, pantry, kitchens, canteen and, on the upper floors, accommodation for 20-30 nuns, used both for dormitories and for environments of work and prayer.

The three sides of the convent factory and the body of the church closed, inside, a rectangular cloister with a portico with small columns of white marble, of which you can now see only the planimetric shape revealed by the remains of foundations and a well. Being a place full of atmosphere thanks to its Gothic style and its little sunny location, there is no shortage of stories and legends that see it as the protagonist, such as the one that tells of a nun madly in love with a shepherd, who, in violation of the rule of chastity, remained pregnant and for this she suffered the terrible punishment of being walled alive in a cell together with her newborn baby: for this reason, at night, one hears a poignant lament that rises from the stones of the ancient monastery.

Rapallo lace

Rapallo, the picturesque town of the Riviera di Levante in the province of Genoa, in addition to making Nietsche and Hemingway fall in love for the splendid landscape that sees it as a protagonist, brings on stage another beauty, that of lace, a story closely connected to the tradition and local culture in key female.

It all started around the 16th century when the women of Rapallo began to demonstrate that skilful dexterity by mending the nets used by the fishermen husbands, the first approach with the thread led them to the next step, to grab the tools of the trade for pastime, to garnish household linens such as sheets, linens and fabrics in spare time cuttings once the household chores are finished.

What was a family-sized business slowly took hold in the Rapallese social and economic context and it was thus that the embroiderers, honing their knowledge, gave life to what everyone knows as “Rapallo stitch lace”. To witness the great boom, one must wait for the arrival of the nineteenth century when the processing reached the period of maximum prosperity and splendor.

The Manifattura Zennaro was very successful and, founded in 1908, brought this art outside the Ligurian borders while the Ligurian Lace School was inaugurated in 1969.

Everything is in the hands of women: they are the ones who, with great skill and patience, work on cylindrical cushions the sheet with the lace design which is first hatched with ink on strips of cardboard and then proceed with the weaving. The famous “Punto Rapallo” is very well known and requires a large number of bobbins and is characterized by rounded reliefs while, as far as the texture is concerned, it is very dense with a seed or leaf shape.

In an exceptional setting such as Villa Tigullio, the doors open to the Lace Museum, a beautiful showcase where you can admire over 1,400 artifacts made between the 16th and 20th centuries. It is impossible not to notice the lace panel made on the design of the painter Lele Luzzati ready to tell the Commedia dell’Arte Italiana.

Beautiful to see and buy, Rapallo’s lace is tempting to all those who love to fill the house with beautiful things: the reference point is in Piazza Cavour, we are talking about a historic shop, opened since 1920 and managed by Emilio Gandolfi who, for three generations, has been carrying on the tradition of the art of lace, which is why his fame knows no geographical limits enough to have orders from every corner of the world.

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According to tradition, April 21st, 753 Before Christ is the official date of the birth of the Rome and the day on which Rome’s Christmas is celebrated.

Legend has it that the god Mars and Rhea Silvia fell madly in love by procreating the twins Romulus and Remus. The king of the city of Albalonga, uncle of the unborn, had Rea Silvia imprisoned and ordered that the twins be placed in a basket and thrown into the Tiber river, so that the current would take them away forever.

Although it is a more legendary than historical date, Rome still celebrates its foundation on April 21 on the Palatine hill. Rome’s birthplace was remembered in ancient times by its inhabitants with a party called ‘Palilia’.

The legend behind this evocative celebration was popularized by Marco Terenzio Varrone, writer and soldier of ancient Rome, who told how Romolo founded the city on April 21st, 753 BC, a date which his friend Lucio Taruzio reached through complicated astrological calculations.

For a long time, the Roman chronology depended precisely on the foundation date, which marked the years through the Latin phrase “Ab Urbe Condita”, or “since the foundation of the city”. Then the great emperors created clamour and curiosity around this date, starting to celebrate it as a sort of imperial propaganda. The first to celebrate Christmas in Rome was Emperor Claudius, in 47, eight hundred years after the alleged foundation of the city: after him, many followed his example, and coins were even printed for Rome’s thousandth birthday celebrative.

During the imperial age, the feast of San Cesareo deacon and martyr (whose name Kaisarios) must have predestined him to become patron of the Caesars, and was established for April 21st, the date of the foundation of Rome: this date acquired a value full of meaning, above all for the function of imperial propaganda with which it fulfilled; and moreover, it was an excuse to celebrate the figure of the emperor and his tutelary saint.

It is impossible not to be fascinated by the historical myth of the foundation which occurred at the hands of Romulus, who in turn descended from the son of Aeneas, the Trojan hero who arrived in Lazio after the fall of Troy.

A great mystery then surrounds the very name of the city: Plutarch initially claimed that it derived from the people who founded the city, the Pelasgians, who wanted to give it a name that remembered their prowess in arms (Rhome), and then proposed another reconstruction according to which Trojan refugees led by Aeneas arrived on the coast of Lazio and founded a city on the Palatine hill, giving it the name of one of their women, precisely Rhome; still others argue that it derives from the Etruscan term Ruma, as the Indo-European etymology is absent and Etruscan was the only non-Indo-European language in the area.

With the spread first, the adoption then, of Christianity as a state religion, to which was added the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the subsequent falls, migrations and conquests of Barbarian populations, Rome, like everything that was his empire, saw many of its uses, customs and traditions disappear, including many of its festivities.

Rome’s Christmas still represents a symbol date for the Romans, as well as for history buffs, fascinated by its legendary origins.

In the past 20 years, the celebrations of Christmas in Rome have resumed thanks to the work of the Gruppo Storico Romano, an association of historical re-enactment that, with costumed representations and historical reconstructions, celebrates the city anniversary by welcoming thousands of enthusiasts and scholars every year.

This year the Capitol, thanks to the free collaboration of a group of professionals, has created and produced a show-tribute to the Eternal City and to the Italians, played by the actor Max Giusti and which will be broadcast on Rai (the first channel on Italian TV).

The event, set in the splendid setting of the Capitol, Capitoline Museums and with the background of the Imperial Forums, will be broadcast on Rai2 for the first time during the Patriae broadcast.

The following day, 22nd April, it will be available in full version on the Roma Capitale website and social networks.

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