Gorzegno
Welcome to Gorzegno!
Hello everyone! Today I'm going to talk about Gorzegno, a small Piedmontese municipality located in the province of Cuneo. With only 260 inhabitants, Gorzegno is a quiet place where you can enjoy the peace and tranquility of the countryside. But Gorzegno is much more than that, there's a lot to discover! In this text, I'll talk about the origins of its name, its history, and its monuments and places of interest that you can visit when you take a trip there.
Origins of the name
Let's start with the origins of the name Gorzegno. According to some theories, the name could derive from "Cohors Aennii" from the Roman era, indicating a cohort that depended on the centurion Ennio. It isn't certain, but it's worth thinking about!
History
Now let's move on to the history of Gorzegno. During the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, Gorzegno was a fiefdom of one of the branches of the Del Carretto family, known as the "Del Carretto di Gorzegno." Until the 18th century, Gorzegno gave its name to an extensive march recognized as Imperial Fiefdoms comprising many communities. Interesting, isn't it?
Monuments and places of interest
But let's now take a look at the monuments and places of interest in Gorzegno.
NASC - Museum of Speaking Stones
Gorzegno is famous for the NASC - Museum of Speaking Stones, an open-air path created by Romano Vola, former mayor of Bergolo, and realized thanks to the work of historians Walter Accigliaro and Giordano Berti. This path includes many historical buildings that have been reconstructed based on reliable documents. Each building has a dedicated caption and a QR code that leads to the website containing extensive insights and photographic material.
The open-air path also includes a section of contemporary art, curated by Giordano Berti, featuring works donated by artists from various origins distributed in various points of the village, and an ethnographic section, curated by Giordano Berti in collaboration with the art designer Letizia Rivetti, that includes various stone artifacts from the local tradition.
In 2021, a new section entitled "The Mysterious Stones of Voynich," curated by Giordano Berti with works by sculptors Nando Gallo, Ivano Ghiglia, and Remo Salcio, inspired by the illustrations of the mysterious Voynich Manuscript, was inaugurated. This section is definitely not to be missed!
Historical Buildings
Gorzegno is also rich in historical buildings. You can't miss the few but interesting ruins of the "Castle of the Marquises of Carretto," which was built in the Middle Ages and several times modified until transforming from a stronghold into a hall in representation of the Marquises of Gorzegno. You should also visit the Chapel of S. Martino, built in 1587 near the castle on the basis of a preexisting sacred building. It's one of the few examples, in Piedmont, of a church with a Greek cross plan, and after a long abandonment, it was restored in 1998 with philological criteria and now serves as an exhibition space for art exhibitions.
Conclusion
So here are my impressions of Gorzegno. I hope this article has been helpful and has given you the desire to visit this small Piedmontese municipality. There's nothing better than experiencing Italian culture and history in a quiet and unspoiled place. See you soon!
