SAVIGLIANO

“Santa Rosa” Square

Savigliano’s town life revolves around its medieval heart: “Santa Rosa” Square, which is dedicated to Santorre di Santa Rosa, a well-known patriot. He was born in Savigliano and was one of the protagonists of the 1821 revolutionary uprisings. A monument in his memory stands in the centre of this square, which is embraced and sorrounded by the medieval palaces that once belonged to the most important families of the town. These tower-houses, their elegant façades decorated with terracotta windows and frescoes as well as their shady porticoes, which house shops and historic cafés, testify to Savigliano’s historic prestige. The town’s majestic civic tower dates back to the 13th century and stands out above all this beauty. It was modified several times in the past and today it is crowned by its belfry, which was rebuilt after a fire in 1644. A triumphal arch stands at the entrance to Via Sant'Andrea. Triumphal arches used to be build in the past to celebrate important events. They were usually made of either wood or flowers and branches. Only the wealthiest towns could afford a masonry triumphal arch and Savigliano was one of them. In 1585 this arch was built to celebrate the passage of Charles Emmanuel I of Savoy and his bride Catherine of Austria. It was designed by Turin’s architect Giovanni Battista Riva and decorated by Savigliano’s painter Giovanni Angelo Dolce. The side passage connecting the porticoes was opened around 1845 thanks to the architect named Maurizio Eula.

“Muratori Cravetta” Palace and “Taffini d’Acceglio” Palace

Sant'Andrea district is home to some of the town's architectural gems, such as the precious “Muratori Cravetta” Palace. This building is characterised by both its splendid French garden, which has been recently restored and, the elegant façade of the so-called “Duke's Pavilion”, where 16th-century sculptures and frescoes celebrate the Savoy lineage. Charles Emmanuel I died in this very building in 1630, and today his bust is easily recognisable amont the ones hosted here. An ancient wooden gateway along the arcades of Via Sant'Andrea leads to one of the most beautiful aristocratic palaces in Piedmont: “Taffini d'Acceglio” Palace. Starting from the 16th century, the Taffini family had gained great prestige at the Savoy court and the construction of this representative seat was their consecration. The palace consists of two bodies with arcades and loggias organised around a courtyard. Since 2015 it has hosted the 'Múses - European Academy of Essences'. In the centre there is the “Garden of the Senses”, which is populated by aromatic and medicinal plants as well as flower essences. Here stands Franz Stähler’s installation entitled “The Painter's Palette”: a scented fountain misting perfumed jets, which envelop visitors. A tour around its 13 rooms offers visitors the opportunity to discover the history of perfumery over the centuries through multimedia content, contemporary art installations and sensory experiences. The jewel in the building's crown is the grandiose hall of honour frescoed by the Savigliano’s masters of the Molineri school after 1637, the date of the Battle of Mombaldone, which was painted on the east wall. Visitors are enveloped on all four sides by an airy trompe l'oeil loggia with mock tapestries illustrating the triumphs of Victor Amadeus I of Savoy, who is also celebrated by the Fame and Victory on the vault as well as the festive cherubs intertwining the letters of his name with leaves. Next to the door, a portrait of Charles Emmanuel I, painted like a bronze sculpture, welcomes visitors admiring his son's exploits.

“Milanollo” Civic Theatre

This theatre is the result of the 19th-century spirit, which favoured the creation of places dedicated to entertainment, culture as well as everyday life. As recalled by the inscription on its neoclassical façade, this civic theatre was created between 1834 and 1836 and designed by Savigliano’s architect Maurizio Eula at the behest of a group of citizens. The sculptural decoration of the building recalls typical theatre themes: at the top there is Glory crowning Music and Poetry while the statues of Tragedy and Comedy are in the side niches. The interior is a little gem with perfect acoustics: it has an oval floor plan, with a double order of boxes, balconies and galleries. Savigliano’s painter Pietro Ayres made the pictorial decorations with the Apotheosis of Psyche on the ceiling and Galatea and Polyphemus in the theatre's foyer, a small room set up as a small theatre for music on the first floor. It is complete with a loggia for the orchestra. In 1899, the municipal council unanimously decided to dedicate the theatre to the memory of two sisters, Teresa and Maria Margherita Milanollo, who were Savigliano’s famous musicians also known throughout Europe.

“Antonino Olmo” Civic Museum and “Davide Calandra” Plaster Collection

The 17th-century convent of “San Francesco” houses both the 'Antonino Olmo' Civic Museum and the 'Davide Calandra' Plaster Collection. Along its quadrangular cloister as well as inside the monks' cells, there are a few carefully arranged places able to tell visitors the history of this area starting from its medieval lapidary endowed with a curious Longobard tombstone complete with a curse. Then there are also the precious polyptychs which date back to the 14th and 15th centuries and the testimonies of the Savigliano’s school of painting that emerged in the 17th century around Giovanni Antonio Molineri as well as the 'Attilio Bonino' Collection of Paintings and Sculpture. A special room set up with objects that once belonged to Savigliano’s violinists Maria and Teresa Milanollo is worthy of a special visit as well as the relief model made by Marco Nicolosino in 1817, which is a fundamental testimony to the town's urban development and finallly the “Schiaparelli” Collection and the section dedicated to the 'programmed and experimental' art of the artistic movements of the 1970s. Davide Calandra's plaster cast collection has found a scenic setting in a luminous church. The collection was donated by Davide’s daughter Elena in 1973. Some of the great sculptor's work tools, plaster statues, clays, sketches, drawings are diplayed in an evocative parade. The preparatory casts of some of the most important Italian monuments can be found here, including the Frieze for the Italian Parliament hall in Montecitorio in 1910, the monument of Umberto I in Rome as well as the one of Prince Amedeo in Turin.

San Pietro

In 1822 a Roman tombstone dating back to the 1st century AD was discovered here thus suggesting that the church stands on the remains of a temple dedicated to goddess Diana. In 1028 San Pietro was mentioned as an important Benedictine monastery and today it preserves some of the city's most important works of art. Its presbytery is dominated by a majestic wooden altarpiece painted by Gandolfino da Roreto in 1510. The artist was called there by his brother, who was a monk at San Pietro at the time. Today this is one of the most beautiful Renaissance polyptychs in Piedmont. At the beginning of the 17th century, the decoration of the lunettes was entrusted to Cesare Arbasia, who frescoed figures of pontiff saints, bishops and Benedictine monks. In the first lunette on the right, he left his initials and the date 1607. A few decades later, in 1621 Antonio Molineri painted the two large frescoes with the martyrdom of St. Peter and St. Paul, the grotesques and the monumental figures of saints in false niches. The chapels of the naves also preserve important works such as the baptismal font from 1498, the powerful St. Jerome by Giovanni Antonio Molineri, the statue of the dead Christ by Carlo Giuseppe Plura under the altar of the chapel of the crucifix, and the painting by Sebastiano Taricco on the counter façade.

Piedmontese Railway Museum

The Piedmontese Railway Museum is a true paradise for train lovers, no matter whether big or small. It is dedicated to the memory of three great Piedmontese engineers: Sebastiano Grandis, Severino Grattoni and German Sommeiller. The exhibition is divided into several sections: on the outside over seventy vehicles including locomotives, carriages and special vehicles have been saved from destruction and are now on display. Some of them have been restored and are still in working order today. By moving among the carriages and wooden seats you will be taken you on a fascinating journey into the past. On the inside, you can get lost among the relics, tools, accessories, models and models. The model donated by Riccardo Mina is trully of great interest with its digital electronic control, which allows a large number of trainsets to be driven at the same time and independently of each other thus making it very close to the systems used to control trains in reality. The section called 'Savigliano’s Workshop. A history of trains and people', is a special space not only dedicated to the history of the trains manufactured here, but also to the people who had built them.

CREDITS

Direction: Paolo Ansaldi
Post-Production: VDEA Produzioni
Translation: Europa 92
Copywrite and research: Laura Marino