ITALY LAUNCHING “REDISCOVERING ROOTS” YEAR
The “Borghi Piu Belli d'Italia Association” has finally brought out is long-awaited guide book in English, under the title “The Most Beautiful Borghi of Italy”. The word “borghi” was not translated on purpose, because the “Borghi” are not simply pretty villages, but historical old towns full of works of art, landmark buildings and monuments, harmonious architecture and exclusive places of interest.
The Association, founded in 2001 to promote villages and towns outside the normal tourism circuits, has boomed over the years and now has a membership of 348 small towns scattered all over the Italian peninsula – a considerable number, considering that membership is governed by a strict criteria with 72 different parameters that have to be met to qualify.
The new English language edition was presented in London at the beginning of 2022 and will be launched in New York and Canada later in the year, in concurrence with the 2024 “Anno del Turismo delle Radici” (directed at 3rd and 4th generation Italian immigrants to encourage them to visit Italy in order to rediscover their roots), promoted by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI).
The borghi listed in the book have a wide range of unexpected attractions that distinguish them from the others. Some examples: Scanno in Abruzzo is celebrated for its heart-shaped lake (a favourite for St. Valentine trips), Monteverde in Campania is the chosen nesting place for the rare black stork, little Bouville Ernica in the hinterland of Lazio possesses a forgotten Giotto angel.
Info: Tel. +39.06.45450688 www.borghipiubelliditalia.it
VERONA'S FALLING STAR
Experts are still estimating the damage caused by the fall of the 78 ton “Star” comet sculpture that bridged the ancient Roman Verona amphitheatre and the outside Piazza Bra in the city centre. The massive 70m high and 82m long steel “Star of Bethlehem”, created by architect-scenographer Rinaldo Olivieri in 1984, has been a fixed feature of the Verona Christmas season ever since.
Unfortunately, its career may be over. A fatal mistake in the complex operation to remove the sculpture caused it to fall and crash into the celebrated Arena, venue of the prestigious summer opera season, causing what experts called “irreparable damage” to the cavea, which dates back to 30 AD.
The “Star” was originally meant to be one-only fixture, and was much criticized by culture experts when it was first installed, but was subsequently greeted with such affection by the local people that it has become the symbol of the Verona Christmas, erected every year.. A recent opinion poll has established that three quarters of those questioned want the Star to be repaired and set up next Christmas.
M. STENHOUSE
Info: Fondazione Arena di Verona Tel. +39.045596517 www.arena.it info@arenadiverona.it
NATIONAL PARK'S LATE LAMENTED BEAR
Animal lovers are in mourning for the death of Juan Carrito, the most famous wild bear in the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise, hit by a car while he was ambling along the verge of a road that cut through the park. Juan Carrito was a three-year old brown Marsical bear, who lived, free to roam over the wild mountainous territory of the Central Apennines. But unfortunately, Juan Carrito seemed to prefer human company to solitude. He had become a common sight wandering at night through the streets of the mountain villages and even climbing up on balconies to take a look around. He became so bold that he broke into shops and henhouses to steal food and climbed up trees in family orchards to eat the fruit.
A couple of years ago, for his own safety, park rangers transferred him by helicopter to a more remote area far from human habitation. However, he soon found his way back to his old haunts and habits.
Juan Carrito was one of an estimated 50 Marsican bears that have been officially recorded to inhabit the territory of what is Italy's oldest Nature Reserve, established in 1923. The Marsican bear is native to Italy - a sub-species of the European brown bear - and is in danger of extinction, so the recent loss was much lamented. He got his peculiar Spanish-sounding name because he was first identified in the hamlet of Carrito (a name of Spanish origin) in the heart of the Park.
“It's as if a member of the family has left us,” remarked Park Director Luciano Sammarone sadly.
Info: Tel. +39.0863.91131 www.parcoabruzzo.it
VALCAMONICA - the MYSTERIOUS TRACES OF THE ANCIENTS
Within its territory, Brescia, twinned with Bergamo as this year's Italian Capital of Culture, has one of the world's most significant prehistoric sites. Some ninety kilometres north of the city lies the mountain valley of Valcamonica, with one of the most extensive collections of prehistoric petroglyphs in the world.
The thousand acre area was the first Italian heritage site to be listed by UNESCO in 1979. It contains thousands of figurines and symbols carved on the surface of the rocks, dating from the Mesolithic period through the Iron Age. The images depict ritualized figures, such as warriors, hunters, dancers, ploughmen, wild animals and birds.
Two of the most intriguing carvings within the territory are the so-called “Rosa Camuna”, which has been adopted as the logo of the Lombardy region, and the “Map of Bedolina”, believed to portray the layout of the surrounding countryside and settlements.
The site is divided into four protected areas. The central information office is at Capo di Ponte, Naquane.
Info: Tel. +39.036442140www.archeocamuni.it
BERGAMO / BRESCIA TWINNED FOR PRIZE
For the first time two Italian cities, Bergamo and Brescia (Lombardia), have joined forces to capture the coveted denomination of “Italian City of Culture 2023.” The prize, introduced by former Culture Minister Dario Franceschini, is awarded anually to a municipality that produces the best initiatives to promote its cultural image and consequently boost tourism. The prize brings €1m to the winner of the best project. The 2022 winner was the small island of Procida off the coast of Naples which offered a programme of 44 innovative projects and 154 events distributed throughout the entire year.
Bergamo and Brescia were the cities worst hit at the onset of the Covid pandemic and the inaugural “Festival of Light” ceremony with the theme “Light is Life” is also intended as a tribute to the memory of the many victims.
The two cities have packed parallel programmes throughout the year, with art exhibitions, concerts and other major events.
For details of the full programme: www.bergamobrescia2023.it
CHINESE ARTISTS ON SHOW IN ROME
In conjunction with the current Chinese New Year, Palazzo Merulana, one of Rome's leading cultural centres for modern and contemporary art, is holding an exhibition of the works of a group of young Chinese artists that are studying Italian art at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma. The unusual event has been organized by the Associazione Seconde Generazioni Cinesi in collaboration with the Paris-based Guanghua Cultures et Media group, publishers of the “Europe Daily News”, the leading European newspaper in the Chinese language.
The exhibition, entitled “UP” and curated by Chinese contemporary art expert Liliana Liao, demonstrates the growing interest in China for Western art and Italian art in particular. The present study course is intended as a bridge between two very different traditions, where each culture can learn from the other. According to “Up” organizers, the art market in China is very active at this moment, showing ever increasing interest in international cross-border trends.
The Palazzo Merulana venue is known for a tradition of ground breaking exhibitions of contemporary and experimental art. The splendid late 19th century building was formerly an abandoned medical centre, which was purchased and restored by entrepreneurs Claudio and Elena Cerasi. The four-storey building also houses the Cerasi private collection of leading 20th century artists like Giacomo Balla, Mario Sironi, Giorgio de Chirico, Mario Schifani and others of the Roman School.
According to the 12 year Chinese lunar calendar, this year is The Year of the Rabbit which the Chinese welcome as a positive sign, representing prosperity, luck and tranquility.
The “Up” exhibition runs between the 22nd January - 5th February 2023.
M.STENHOUSE
Info: Tel.+39.3996.7800 www.palazzomerulana.it ufficiostampa.leeloo@gamil.com
LITTLE PRINCE OF CASERTA BACK ON VIEW
The interest shown by visitors in the sculpture of the “Little Prince of Caserta,” which was on exhibit last year 2022 in the Cappella Palatina in the Royal Palace of Naples, has prompted curators to put it on permanent show. This time, the life-size image of the baby prince Carlo Tito, born in 1775 and the first male heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Naples, has been placed inside the newly restored royal bedroom in the Palace of Caserta, just outside Naples. His mother, Queen Maria Carolina of Austria, commissioned the portrait of the sleeping infant from the sculptor Giuseppe Sanmartino, author of the celebrated “Cristo Velato” (the Veiled Christ) in the Sansevero Chapel Museum, one of the most admired artistic treasures of Naples.
Unfortunately Carlo Tito died at the age of four. The Little Prince sculpture lies on a cushion near the royal bed under the painting by the artist Girolamo Pompeo Batoni depicting himself and his little sister, Princess Marianne, who also died in infancy, being hoisted up to heaven by angels.
The Royal Palace of Caserta sits in an 11-acre park. Palace and gardens are open every day except Tuesday.
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STENHOUSE
Info: Tel. +39.0823.448084 https://reggiadicaserta.cultura.gov.it
ITALY'S LIBRARY PATRIMONY...and the enigmatic VERONA RIDDLE
The Italian Ministry of Culture has embarked on a nationwide campaign to promote its 7,425 public and state libraries, many of which are of great historical interest, containing rare books, ancient documents, illuminated manuscripts and other treasures. Despite this, most are little known or frequented by the general public. To make these rich houses of learning better known, the Ministry has commissioned a promotional video called “Extraordinary Journeys” showing actors in historic costumes of various eras eagerly perusing the book shelves, produced in collaboration with the Fondazione Centro Sperimentale di Cinematogtafia (Centre of Experimental Cinema Foundation)..
According to pre-Covid statistics, just over 58% of Italian towns possess at least one library. The largest public library is in Florence where the National Central Library has a collection of just under 9 million volumes, followed by the Rome Central National Library (over 6 million books), then the Victor Emmanuel III Library of Naples and Bologna's University Library.
Italy's oldest library still in use is the Biblioteca Capitolare attached to Verona Cathedral, which was founded at the beginning of the 6th century AD. Badly damaged during WWII, it was rebuilt in 1948. This library contains a curiosity in the form of a parchment with a riddle, written by a monk in the 8th-9th century AD. The “Veronese Riddle” is a short poem in what is arguably the first known text in late Latin Vulgate or early Romance language. The cryptic text describes a plough drawn by white oxen sowing a row of black seeds in a white field that scholars have interpreted as a metaphor for a hand writing lines of black ink on a white page.
Info: https://librari. beniculturali.it
CAVE'S GIGANTIC NATIVITY GROUP
A visit to see the Monumental Nativity in the town of Cave (Lazio) makes a fitting conclusion to the long Christmas season. The towering figures of the Holy Family, along with the Three Kings that symbolize Epiphany, are set up in the pillared vaults of a former 11th century Benedictine monastery in the small Lazio town some 40 kms from Rome.
The 4m-high sculptures are the work of local artist Lorenzo Ferri, who died in 1975, and whose life and work are celebrated in a monographic museum in the historic centre, reached by a bridge spanning the ravine that separates the historic old town and from the new part.
The Nativity figures were commissioned by the Pallottine Order for the Church of Sant'Andrea della Valle in Rome in 1947. Ferri made the nine gesso models in the projected size within the following year. The “Indian King” kneeling before the Holy Family group, has his own facial portrait, while his son Sirio posed for St. Joseph and boxing champion Erminio Spalle was the model for the “Assyrian King”. However, the statues were never cast in bronze as originally commissioned, due to financial problems.
The sculptor's family donated the Nativity, along with a large number of his works of art, including sculptures, paintings and studies to the town, which are on display in separate premises in the “new town”. The Museo Lorenzo Ferri celebrates its tenth anniversary in December 2023.
M. STENHOUSE
Info: Tel.+39.06.9507310 www.Facebook.com/MuseoLorenzoFerro
RUBENS SEIZED IN GENOA EXHIBITION
Italy's cultural guardians, the Carabiniere Commando Tutela Culturale Patrimonio (Protection of Cultural Heritage) have closed the year with another triumph – the identification and seizure by the TCP Genoese branch of “Christ Resurrected Appears to his Mother” attributed to the Flemish master Rubens and his school. The painting, which was in private hands, appeared in an exhibition on “Rubens in Genoa” at Palazzo Ducale, complete with false documents that would have allowed its sale and exportation. Rubens worked for some time in Genoa at the service of the ruling Gonzago aristocratic family. This particular work was on display for the first time in Italy, but the TPC's extensive online catalogue of Italian owned works of art and antiquities allowed officers to pinpoint the work immediately.
Some months earlier, the culture corps tracked down an important Titian: “Portrait of a Gentleman with a Black Cap” that had been missing since 2004 when it was smuggled to Switzerland.
In July 2022, the new Museum of Recovered Art and Antiquities was inaugurated in Rome's central Piazza della Repubblica with changing displays of exhibits of treasures that have been saved from tomb robbers and crooked dealers.
Info: Tel, 010.5955488 tpcgenu@carabinieri.it
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