Welcome to Astinternational

The town hall can be appreciated most of all by admiring the external side of the walls, where one can notice the construction in sandstone, a sign of a very accurate workmanship, enriching and supporting the near-by buildings that reveal mediaeval architectural features.

The inside of the building with a spacious lounge, is adorned with webbed bricked arches with groins, and an original stucco fire-place with the Araldico emblem represented with lions on the sides.

Interesting are the village’s second row of buildings which follow the hill’s gentle pattern, leaning on a thin fascia of ground, that continues towards the country-side along a steep slope.

Built during the last century, Sizia house welcomes visitors at the village’s entrance. Built using stone and bricks, it has an elegant portal dominated by a little porch on which there is a decoration with a putto in terracotta.

Even though the construction of the building followed the tradition of using local materials, it represents a perfect example of a bourgeois construction with versatile influences coming from other realities.

The imposing building is alleviated and made more graceful by a series of small hanging arches, by two-mullioned windows and by dentil frames which separate the tiers, creating a movement effect on the façade.

The building built using plaster and bricks, dates from the second half of the nineteenth century.  Inside there is a cloister, barrel vaults with stucco decorations, and dried style paintings. The building, in an Art-Nouveau style is recognizable by the typical colouristic features from that period, with elegant decorations and exterior accessories such as the characteristic cantilever rested on finely shaped slender brackets.  In the surrounding garden there are many age-old trees and rare species of plants.

Today it houses the town hall .

The two storey building, still maintains its original mediaeval forms, visible in the typical features, especially in the stone ogival arches on the portico, that are supported by solid sandstone columns made up of croisers surmounted by romansque capitals.

The columns follow the road’s sloping profile; under the elegant arcades brick cross vaults are revealed; inside the original anthropomorphic stele are preserved, once used as posts in the vineyards; there are also numerous ruins from the roman period to be found inside.

The entrance hall and the Gentilizia Chapel can be visited by prior arrangement with the Municipal administration office.

Opening hours: Can be visited from outside.

Century: XVI

The defence tower was built by the Adorni family during the 16th century.

Originally a Medieval fortress involved in many local wars, this castle was transformed into an aristocratic abode by the Asinari family during the first half of the 17th century.

Cannot be visited.

Cannot be visited. Houses the Association for Concerts of Belveglio Castle.

Opening hours: Private property. It houses a restaurant.

Century: XVIII

This is a splendid late 18th- century, privately-owned house containing large rooms decorated with frescoes and an attractive park situated above a sheer drop to the river Bormida.

It was built on the site of a Medieval manor of which some traces remain at the base of the tower and within the walls.

Can only be visited during events.

Private property.

Guided tours by the owners of the castle. Entrance fee.

Website: www.castelliaperti.it

Casasco is dominated by its castle whose oldest parts date back to the 12th century.

The first documents mentioning the castle date back to 1197 although the population of Asti added fortifications during the 13th century. Originally, it was probably round in shape with two portals. A square tower, topped with tall battlements, dominated the main body of the castle.

Century: XIV

Of the ancient frontier fortress, there are few remaining signs: these include 14th -century arches made of terracotta and tufa with massive main walls.
The course of the castle walls is still visible today and, in some points, the walls themselves can be seen: in certain areas still strong and solid, in others badly in need of restoration.
A tower now incorporated in a private house, a wall, a fragment bulwark are all that remain of a building disrupted by time and man’s tampering.
The south-facing wall is built of brick, with elegant pointed 14th-century windows picked out in bi-coloured alternating stripes of brick and tufa. Beneath these, other two windows can be seen, with the pure line and sober ornamentation of the Renaissance.
The east-facing wall also possesses gothic windows and portals.

Opening hours: Entrance fee; guided tours.

Website: http://www.castelliaperti.it

The castle was built around 1290 by the Asti Municipality to protect the area. It was the Amico family who adapted the Medieval castle to create the stately home we see today. During the 18th century, in fact, the architect Benedetto Alfieri re-designed the castle, transforming it into an elegant Baroque Manor. The interior includes decorations of artistic importance, such as those of the ‘Salone Rosso’, or Red Room, (now the Municipality’s Council Meeting Room) and those of the ‘Salone Verde’, or Green Room, which is used for concerts and exhibitions. The castle also contains other Municipal Offices, a restaurant and a social circle. The underground rooms have been adapted to contain an ethnography museum, "L Ciar" where artefacts from the past are displayed.

The castle was built at the beginning of the 10th century by Berengario Ist, Marquis of Ivrea and Count of Asti, to defend the town of Asti against frequent attacks by Hungarian tribes.

The original castle was completely destroyed by the Spanish in 1644, and only a few traces of the ancient walls remain.

The original castle, an ancient fortress probably built during the Charlemagne era, stood in the place now known as ‘Cascina Castello’, or Castle Farm. The building was abandoned at the beginning of the 12th century and the ‘new’ castle built on the hill top now where the village is situated, which took the name of ‘Castelnuovo’ – signifying ‘new castle’.

Opening hours: Private property; can be visited from outside only.

Century: XIII - XIV

This Medieval castle was built during the 13th and 14th centuries and was probably a residence belonging to Pomposa until the middle of the 16th century, inhabited by monks of the Grangia order who cared for the people of Cerro Tanaro and their chapel of St John in addition to cultivating the fields.
The Abbey was also used to defend the village, later being transformed definitively into a castle. The building remains in good condition.

The castle was almost certainly larger and wider than its ruins appear to indicate today, as demonstrated by traces of wall which occasionally come to light during excavation work and which run from one end of the village to the other.
The castle also contained secret entrance-ways and other means of communication: until recently, a tunnel existed leading from the first row of village houses to beneath the remains of the tower.
The village was also surrounded by walls which passed above the church of Sant’Antonio (St Anthony) where the Porta Soprana (Soprana gate) is situated and then descended westwards, terminating in the Porta Sottana (Sottana gate) of what is now the archway of Casa Brezzo (Brezzo house).
Today, outdoor social activities in Cassinasco are still centred on the green upper part of the village where there is an area for dancing and a children’s play park.

Opening hours: Open all year (closed Monday) from 3 pm to 7 pm.

Century: XII

Private property; contains a guest house.

Entrance free of charge, guided tours.

Open all year.

For dates and times of opening, please consult the web site of the Canelli Municipality (‘comune di Canelli’).

Website: www.comune.canelli.at.it

Entrance free of charge, guided tours.

Website: www.comune.moncucco.asti.it

The castle was destroyed by Gugliemo IX of Monferrato and only a few ruins can be seen today. Originally, the castle dominated the Tanaro valley and the road which led from the High (Alto) Monferrato into the Low (Basso) Monferrato regions. The palace is now inhabited by the Marquises of Incisa and was built during the early 19th century. Of the original Medieval building, there are the remains of the castle wall, or curtain, equipped with towers. The interior dates from later eras. The park is 19th -century and contains many trees including oaks, beeches, sequoias, sweet and horse chestnuts, cedars and lime (linden) trees.

Opening hours: Cannot be visited.

Century: XII

This square-based 15th-century building is all that remains of the original castle.

Opening hours: Open all year.

How to get there: The staircase leading to the tower is situated in the square of Sant’Ilario, the parish church.

Century: XIV

The castle together with its seven towers was put severely to the test during numerous sieges and today all that remains is a single square Medieval bell tower known in local dialect as ‘Ciuchè much’ (roughly: ‘truncated tower’).

Opening hours: Booking required for guided tours.

Century: XV

Website: http://www.castelliaperti.it

Century: XIII

In the town’s central square the ruins of a Medieval castle, residence of the Marquisate of Monferrato, are to be found.

Only the picturesque 13th- century tower and castle ramparts are left. In the space where the castle used to be, there is a square with arcade from which a lovely view can be admired.

Opening hours: Open to the public from May to September on the first and third Tuesday of every month from 9 am to 12 pm.

From the air, the irregular shape of the hill where the impressive castle of Montemagno stands becomes immediately obvious. Towards the year 1000, when the surrounding countryside was still woodland, the town of Montemagno was founded. The oldest part of the town grew up around a fort on the summit of a large hill – Monte (mount) magno (great) – as the name implies, and belonged to the Marquisate of Monferrato. The Medieval town plan, still visible today, is unique in the Basso Monferrato area. The original fort was developed into a castle topped with Ghibelline battlements. Twelve lanes, all that is left of the ancient walled town, fan out spoke-wise from this and terminate in the ruins of the castle walls. According to historical documents, building of the castle began around 981, the original building consisting of a walled keep surrounded by a moat. Federico Barbarossa gave it as a gift to the Marquis of Monferrato in 1164. In 1269, it was partially destroyed during the battle between Asti and the Marquisate of Monferrato, and, in 1290, was completely knocked down. Subsequently, the castle passed through many hands, being bought, sold and borrowed many times over. In 1700 it was transformed in part into an elegant Baroque residence surrounded by a terraced park. Today, it belongs to the Calvi family, Counts of Bergolo.

Guided tours (booking required).

Request an appointment to visit.

Web: www.comune.moasca.at.it 

Opening hours: Cannot be visited.

The castle, built on a hilltop, is composed of two distinct parts: the tower and the house.
The square sandstone tower was probably built during the 12th century and is the oldest part of the complex. At the four corners of its summit are stone supports which probably held up a platform, subsequently destroyed.

The monumental kitchen and nobleman’s suite can be visited.

Entrance fee; guided tours.

Entrance free of charge, guided tours.

The castle stands on a hilltop from where it dominates the village. Cannot be visited at present. Restoration work will soon allow visitors to enter the tower.

The remaining wall does not contain an entranceway, only windows: on the top floor there are three two-lighted, pointed, stone-framed mullions with a central column. The lower floor presents four loopholes. The castle is, in turn, dominated by a tower nearly 30 metres in height built of square sandstone blocks neatly arranged in horizontal rows. The top of the tower presents three suspended arches with supports decorated with a saw-tooth motif. Century: XIII

This square, 26-metre-high tower was erected in the 13th century and is all that remains of an imposing castle and its fortifications, demolished at the beginning of 17th century, of which only some massive walls supporting the earthworks remain.

The tower is built of tufa stone with brick decorations creating an attractive coloured motif. It is topped with a double row of Romanesque suspended arches.

Free entrance, guided tours.

Open during afternoons in some days from June to September. Entrance fee.

Website: www.castelliaperti.it 

Century: XIII. The tower was restored during the 2005 Jubilee and is an attractive example of Medieval military architecture. It is six floors high with a scarped base and is topped with a terrace, originally crowned with battlements. All around are the walls of the castle keep built by the Asinari family during the 14th century.

Opening hours: Cannot be visited.

Cannot be visited. The building was originally built during the 14th century by Gorzano and was re-built in the Baroque era.

During the 19th century it underwent Neo-gothic embellishments.

Built in 1880 by Count Paolo Ballada as an astronomical observatory, the building stands where there was once an ancient manor, destroyed in 1255 during the battles between Asti and the hamlet of Loreto.

Opening hours: Cannot be visited.

Century: XV - XVI

The 16th-century castle is situated right in the middle of the village and also contains the church, with its 16th-century steeple and modern facade, and a Baroque presbytery. Some of the original one- and two-lighted mullion windows and loopholes are still visible along the walls, which are topped with Ghibelline battlements above four rows of windows.

Dating from the original eleventh century complex, today the campanile is still in excellent condition, and is a perfect example of Romanesque architecture.  Twenty-seven metres high, it has four tiers on all four sides with friezes and little hanging arches; the lower part is built in brick and the upper part in stone.

On the top, two floors of round headed arched windows open up, of which the lower ones are in a two-coloured stone.

It has a square plan and appears to be connected to the castle by the round-headed arch, probably the last and only testimony linked with the Benedictine church.

The bastions of the ancient fortified village, that today are still visible, support the embankment where the castle was situated and date from the eleventh century. From here galleries and rooms used to lead off. 

Today the building resembles a luxurious eighteenth century house. 

During the 1300s, the Marquis Enrietto Del Carretto, requested the construction of another two defensive walls, of which some traces still remain.

The tower, of which little remains, is situated in the middle of the old keep.  It has a square base, typical of watchtowers of that period founded on the lands of the Langa region.

In 1840, the Marquis, Aleramo Del Carretto, donated a part of the stones of the turreted castle, to allow for the completion of the railway line that linked Mombaldone with Spigno.

Opening hours: Open from April to October. Booking only.

Century: XIII

Website: http://www.castelliaperti.it 

The castle, which once stood on a hilltop dominating the entire village, was demolished by the Spanish in the 17th century. Only a few ruins of the original walls remain, plus a tower, recently restored, which was part of the external defence system. Cannot be visited.

Opening hours: Cannot be visited. Houses the Municipal offices and a restaurant.

Century: XII

The castle dates from the 13th century and was adapted to become a typical nobleman’s home during the 17th century.

Open all year.

The church is situated in the town centre. Local legend narrates that it was built on a pre-existing church, of which the Romanesque steeple is the remaining feature.

Century: XVIII

This is one of the 18th-century Baroque jewels of the Langa region. It is hexagonal in shape with oval chapels and a brick façade with a portal between two false columns in brick and a jutting lintel. Inside, there are several altars; the one on the left has an attractive oil painting of the Madonna. The frescoes on the apse were painted by the artist Morgari. The modern organ is of very high quality.

Century: XIII

First mentioned in 1265, although the church was subsequently re-built. Inside, there is a group of 17th-century wooden statues representing the Madonna and the Archangel Gabriel, some paintings, the organ and a 19th-century chorus in walnut.

Opening hours: Every day from 8 30 am to midday and 3 pm to 5 30 pm.

Century: XIII-XIV

These Romanesque ruins merit a visit.

Located in front of the local parish, the Oratory of the Disciplinati, or ex parish of S.S. Annunziata, dates back to around 1750. Today, the church is de-consecrated and has characteristic features typical of Baroque architecture, with the façade distinguished by four pilasters on the lower and upper parts which create a movement effect with a large cornice. 

The plastered building, has one main nave with an apse; in the past is was used as a storeroom, but today following the restoration carried out by the local council administration from Bubbio and the local Mountain Community Langa Astigiana Val Bormida, it is used as a multi-functional centre.

The building is extremely interesting due to the geometrical decorative elements that characterize the façade, with large cornices, supported by capital piers. It has a bell-tower with a webbed belfry and two pinnacles that re-call the Gothic features found in the ogival shaped rose-window.

Interesting, inside, is the rectangular absidal with a statue of the Virgin Mary.
The façade has a bell shape, simple in its forms, and a tympanum en-riched with large protruding frames.

This recent construction has one main nave, side windows, but it’s without an apse.  The building is entirely plastered and has a saddle shaped roof. 

The inside is painted with frescos depicting images of the Saint.

During the eighteenth century, on the same site, there existed a country church with a consecrated stone altar without furnishings. The bell-tower is modern in shape, and is detached from the building with a belfry which completes it

The country church, first mentioned in 1728, built on a Latin cross plan, has two side apses that are inserted on the longitudinal body as a later addition.  Inside, we can admire the major altar, the altar dedicated to San Vincenzo de’ Paoli dating from 1752, and another one dedicated to the presentation of Maria Santissima dating from 1747.  

The façade has a portico with a painted vault, whereas the upper part has an interesting setting: the middle part is tripartited by pilasters overlooked by capitals, with side niches that host statues of saints, amongst whom we recognise on the right-hand side Sant’Antonio of Padova. The attic is delimited by two projecting mouldings, of which the superior one presents curvilinear forms and blocks the linearity with the roof.

The oratory already of the Disciplinati, but re-modelled and dedicated to the Santissima Annunziata (1756-1768), was competence of the Confraternity of the Battuti, a laical association  dedicated to religious penitential and charitable practices.

On the portal, the re-call is evident to the near-by church, but on the whole the plastered façade is more slender, set up on four straight lines with high cornerstone pilasters and a tympanum delimited by a line of terracotta coppas.  A slender campanile softens the building. Inside it’s simple and elegant, and preserves a fresco dating from the end of the eighteenth century representing the Annunciation.

Monsignor Gerolamo Ragazzoni, Bishop of Bergamo, first mentioned the church of San Thomaso in 1577.  Afterwards, in other documents it is referred to as S.S. Annunziata, and was situated on the same site as the present one.

The oratory, built on a rectangular plan, has a polygonal vaulted space with the main supporting vaults. Along the left-hand side there is a small square shaped room used as the sacristy, from where the bell-tower once rose, but unfortunately it collapsed years ago, and has never been re-built. The central nave is made up of three bays with barrel and groin vaults, and the walls are signed by piers, whereas the presbytery is over-looked by cross vaults with a triumphal arch.

This little baroque style church is built entirely of stone.  It has a porch supported by pillars with brick arches and a lowered headed arch; a place where pilgrims often found shelter during their journeys. The façade reveals a series of symmetric lines which emphasize the movement of the crowning, revealed also in the lower more distinguished windows.

Two small side windows frame the main door, whereas a slender campanile overlooks the building.

Built following the bishop of Acqui’s wish, Carlo Antonio Gozzani, the church dates back to the end of the seventeenth century, a period in which the Bishop took up his residence. The inside, once richly decorated, still preserves a graceful baroque style altar with an adorned cornice behind it.

The confraternity of the flagellants, to whom it’s entitled, acquired a primary and important role during the centuries in the maintenance of the village’s cultural buildings, and assumed the majority of the refurbishment costs.

This little church is a jewel of baroque architecture dating from 1719, built on the site of a millenary building, destroyed during the course of the centuries. Built in stone, it has a single entrance, which was added later, gore vaults and a central oval window.
Inside, we can admire the ligneous cross by the artist Giulio Monteverde, whereas a central cupola decorated with frescos characterizes the inside creating a sensation in height, typical of baroque architecture.

Brother Jacopo, a monk from Acqui wrote in his chronicle that Ludovico of Provenza, was crowned Emperor by the Pope Benedetto IV, during a visit in the Acquese area; he stayed in the area as a guest of a peasant family, from where the origins of the family of San Guido originate (patron Saint of the Diocese).

The church, as mentioned in the pastoral visits towards the late sixteenth century was an Oratory dedicated to San Sebastiano, and it was only from 1654, that it received a double title. Today it is de-consecrated.

The construction of the building is closely linked to that of the parish; it has a rectangular plan completed by a semi-circular apse. The façade is divided into two tiers with a curved shape cornice, typical of baroque architecture.  Behind the altar, a Latin inscription can be seen dating from 1764.  The internal decorations of the nave and ligneous choir took place in 1883. Today the church hosts many concerts and cultural events.

Built entirely of stone in 1779, as shown by the inscription on the church’s wall, the building dominates the square next to the parish.

Architectonically, it’s divided into two parts, with pilasters and piers, and a projecting cornice distinguished by its forms, which create a movement effect on the façade.  The portal is over-looked by a lunette and a rose-window, that together create a smoother effect.

The church is without a bell-tower and is completed by a semi-circular apse.

This nineteenth century decorated church dominates the little hamlet. 
It was modified in 1911, and has a Latin cross plan with two minor altars. The bays are characterized by high cross vaults, with a marble lavabo.

The façade is divided into two parts; the entrance is adorned and is surrounded by slender columns, whereas the highest part has three large windows supported by a lunette representing San Gerolamo in the desert with the lion. 
The impressive campanile with belfry completes the building.

The private church of San Giuseppe, completes the building complex opposite.  It is a feudal construction built along the old roman via Aemilia Scauria that from Savona lead towards Asti and Alba.

Built in brick and stone and once plastered, it has a rectangular plan without a protruding apse. On the sides, the piers delimit the space, and on the façade two side windows ornate the entrance, over-looked by a third window.

The webbed bell-tower imposes over the supporting walling.

The little private church dedicated to San Giuseppe and San Francesco, is characterized by the moving effect created by the canopy shaped portal, and the elegant cotta campanile with a cupola  shape covering.

The façade has two side parasters which surmount the gable and rose-window. A plaque in the wall states the construction of the building, 1903, and the name of the purchaser (Giuseppe Mocafighe).  The statue of the saint is preseved in the apse.

The construction of the church of San Grato dates from the mediaeval period, but the actual building built on a characteristic octagonal plan with round-arched arcades, dates from 1888.  It reminds us, even though in a smaller version of the church of S. Vitale in Ravenna.

The local stone is set off by the buildings forms and by the external parameter.

Situated in a panoramic and dominant position overlooking the valley, it became dedicated to the cult of San Grato, in order to obtain the protection from the hailstorms during the harvest period.

The hamlet houses in its little square the ex-parish built in 1604, with the ex-oratory of the  Disciplinati next door, of smaller proportions, built on a single plan finishing with a apse.

Behind the building was the old cemetery, used until the beginning of the twentieth century, recently moved.

A parish report from 1786, states that this church was liable to the payment of a pound of wax on the first of August every year. Documents testify that this grant was sent to the Parish of Roccaverano up until 1674.

The church is situated on a hilltop on the border between the villages of Rocchetta Palafea and Cassinasco, from where there is a wonderful picturesque view over-looking all the Langa country-side.

In origin, the church was the chapel of Soriano, an ancient village whose castle was donated from the Emperor to the Bishop of Acqui in 1116.  Towards the end of the fourteenth century, the village disappeared probably due to the plague epidemic in 1348.

Today, the apse is the only remaining original part of the old church, and has a base characterized by an oblique positioning of the stones.

The other remaining parts were added during the following period.

The church, surrounded by rich vegetation, has local typical forms. Built in stone with a saddle shape roof and on a rectangular plan.

Interesting, is the quatrefoil rose window on the façade; the entrance is surrounded by two simple shaped windows.

The inside is adorned with pastel colours, and is surmounted by a barrel vault with groins; an interesting building feature is represented on the wooden tie-beams.

The church with a typical saddle shaped façade, has a brick vault and was previously plastered with groins.  In the inside, a simple altar is over-looked by a stucco cornice, once containing the image of the patron saint. 

The sidewalls are decorated with pastels and are delimited by a large cornice.

Situated along the road that leads to the village of Roccaverano, this rural church dedicated to San Rocco is an example of the people’s devotion. 

It was built in the seventeenth century for the survivors of the plague epidemic, and a plaque testifies this by thanking the patron saint.

The church has a simple plan with a saddle shaped roof, and appears to lean against the left-hand side of the façade.  The bell-tower has a belfry with a cupola shape.

The façade has simple forms, with a tympanum enriched by protruding cornices and piers, which mark the plastered walls.  It was built during the seventeenth century, as an ex-voto for the survivors of the plague.  A country church with typical votive architectonical features, one main nave without side chapels, and a simple bell-tower.

As a devotion to the Saint, the canvas of the Moncalvo, bearing San Rocco’s image, clearly shows the suffering signs of the inhabitants linked with the plague.

A country church built in 1628 by the local inhabitants of Rocchetta, Calamandrana e Castelvero, to avert the danger of the plague.  The epidemic which spread in those years, severely affected the small population of Rocchetta Palafea, killing half of the inhabitants.  The façade, today plastered, is decorated by a little portal, surmounted by a triangular tympanum,  double lancet windows and a central rose window.  On the crowning, there is a statue of San Rocco, invoked as protector and healer of the epidemic.

Patron saint day is celebrated on the 16th August.

The church in the hamlet of San Rocco is surrounded by typical Langa country-side farmhouses.

The pronaos, higher compared to the façade, has three frontal and two side arches that open up illuminating the windows surrounding the entrance;  the building has a reduced prospect compared to the roof behind it.

The inside is built on a simple plan, without decorations, apart from a golden covered wooden cross and other sculptures representing saints dating from the second half of the last century.

The campanile has a belfry and a typical pointed roofing with steeples.

Built at the beginning of the twentieth century, the church is situated at the beginning of the road that from Cassinasco leads to Canelli, near the junction 111. 

Its position is typical of the churches that at one time used to welcome travellers, and were dedicated to patron saints to mark off the end of the plague. The small building with an apse, has one large space where it hosts an altar with a statue of a saint pierced by arrows.  The pronao, with arches on three sides, has a bell-shaped façade, lower compared to the roof behind it.

The little 1600s church is located on a piece of land bordering with the road underneath it.

The style is typical of country-churches, built on a simple plan without a semi-circular apse.

It has side piers and is surmounted by a bell-shaped roof.  It has a simple, slender campanile on the left-hand side completed by a belfry.

The inside has a vaulted ceiling and preserves an important altar decorated with a setting that at one time represented the Saint’s image.

The private church of San Sebastiano welcomes pilgrims at the village’s entrance with a cool shady portico, made up of pillars with an arches pediment which hosts a niche.

The little church has one main nave dominated by pilasters, with a saddle roof and a small side bell-tower with a belfry and pointed roof.

Inside there are statues and a devotional polychrome mural painting.

The country-church is located in a predominant position, on an embankment built with stone walls. The building has a saddle shape roof and a small iron cross.  The side piers on the main and lateral parts, built entirely in stone, mark off the outside, without any further decorative features.

On the façade, the main entrance is framed by a stone cornice, with two side windows, and on top an opening supported with bricks, partially broken, illuminates the inside.

The country church’s position reminds us of the location of those traditional churches that once used to welcome pilgrims under their porticos; a testimony of the people’s devotion are the numerous ex-voto’s inside. The building with a triple arched pronaos has one main nave, a saddle shape roof and a side campanile with a cupola shape covering.  The main entrance is framed by side openings.

Located behind the church is an equipped parking area, at tourists disposal, and for those adventuring along the naturalist paths.

The building is characterized by an oval form with a trilobate layout, and is connected with the upper part of the church by an oval stairway, with nineteenth century decorations and apertures.

The façade, entirely in bricks, is distinguished by impressive Doric columns supported by pilasters.  The portal is decorated with cornices and is surmounted by a wide oval shaped opening supported by a trabeation, characterized by triglyphs in terracotta and protruding cornices.

This little church is represented by rather modern forms on its outer façade, with an entrance and two side windows supported by metallic frames, whereas inside the shapes relate more to the local typology, with a main entrance and square shaped windows with a slit in the wall for charity donations.

The one nave layout is completed by a semi-circular apse, entirely plastered.

The church also has a slender bell-tower

An ancient cult of worship, the church is situated between the border of the Bormida of Millesimo valley with that of Spigno. 

It has simple eighteenth century forms, and is a perfect example of people’s devotion with numerous vows.

The dedication to Santa Libera, is depicted in the image of Her breast feeding two new-born babies; this explains the frequent appeal to this Saint in the practices of local country-side medicines.

The ‘pieve’ (country church) of Vesime probably dates back to the 6th or 7th century, although written proof of this is lacking. It was re-built during the 13th century by the Marquis of Carretto and then enlarged during the 19th and 20th centuries.

Romanesque features remain especially the arches on the south side.

A cemetery church first mentioned in the pastoral chronicles at the beginning of the seventeenth century.  Built in stone and bricks it has a scenografical staircase.
Of particular importance is the portal and the wooden entrance sculptured in two doors. Inside it has a central nave with polygonal apses divided by pilasters, with a large glass opening at the far back, and along the outer wall the once supporting scaffolding holes are still visible.

Restauration in 1997 brought back to light a series of absidal frescoes depicting the Madonna lead by the Angels over the Rocchetta neighbourhood.

The church was built using local stone, a sign of very accurate workmanship, which is particularly evident in the pillars where there are still signs of the chisels used.

The façade has a saddle shape roof and a central rose-window, with a beautiful portal with bas-relief cornices and inscriptions. Restored during the beginning of the twenthieth century, inside it has a plan finishing with an apsidal space, one main nave, a ceiling covered with beams and an interesting fascia over the frame; numerous the ex-voto paintings.

The church of Sessania is dedicated to the Madonna delle Grazie, and was built at the beginning of the twentieth century by the local inhabitants, on the ruins of an ancient country church.

Inside it’s rich with ex-voto, testimonies of people’s devotion.

Located in the suburbs at Quartino, the church was built in 1889, as inscribed on the façade.  It is a simple building, with double tiers over-looked by a tympanum and cornice bearing the church’s name.

The walls reveal volute decorums. Built using local stone, it has a semi-circular apse, and one nave. On the side, the campanile towers slightly above the church and the construction leaning against it.

The first information about the church dates back to 1585, thanks to Monsignor Carlo Montiglio.  The building has baroque forms, with piers and double pilasters supporting the

façade, a central rose-window and a tympanum above. The central plan is distinguished by a reduced transept with an apse and a wooden chorus.

On the right hand-side of the building is a small sacristy, and opposite is the campanile, at whose feet the old cemetery used to be located.

Today, it’s mainly used for cultural events, and inside it’s adorned and made more graceful by nineteenth century décors with chromatisms prevailing in an intense cobalt blue.

Opening hours: Weekdays from 10 45 am to midday and 3 30 pm to 5 30 pm.

Century: XIII-XV

The present-day church probably dates from the first half of the 17th century. It is rectangular, containing a single barrel-vaulted nave with ogees on the four small windows. The brick altar is probably late 16th-century.

Isolated in the country-side, the little church was the first parish in Cassinasco, built around the fifteenth century.  Built using local stone, it has one main nave on a central plan  and a semi-circular apse.  The apse is lit up by two single rectangular lancet windows, and the nave is covered by two brick cross vaults.

The bell-tower and the façade date back to the late eighteenth-century.

Inside there are important fifteenth-century frescos, unfortunately badly damaged, that ornate the apse; in the centre the figure of San Ilario dominates the pulpit surrounded by images of other saints, amongst whom we recognise San Guido. The late-Gothic style frescos dating from the second half of the fifteenth century, depict the Symbols of the Evangelists.

Century: XV-XIX

Old parish church that preserves a baptismal font and some 17th-century frescoes.

Century: XVII

The church was founded in Isola d’Asti around 1629. It displays a Romanesque-style exterior and Neo-classical interior with a Baroque altar. It has been restored several times over the years.

Century: XII - XVII. The ruins of this Medieval castle with its 18th-century chapel of Santa Maria del Castello (St Mary of the Castle) is the architectural symbol of Castelnuovo Don Bosco.

The church, built in the 18th century, presents a harmonious Baroque façade.

Opening hours: Please contact the parish priest or the warden to visit the church.

Century: XII

How to get there: If arriving from the main Asti road number 457, proceed for Castell’Alfero. After the level crossing, turn right for Via Valle. When nearly at the end of the valley turn right following the directions for the church and Località Rebronda and Librero. The church is found just after the metalled road ends.

Opening hours: Can be visited on outside only.

Century: XII

Research has shown that the little church was built during the 12th century. Medieval decorations surface here and there from the more recent plaster and can be seen over the walls and on the capitals decorated with spirals. The ground plan of the church is also clearly Medieval.

Built in a neo-Gothic style at the end of the 1800s,  following an earthquake which destroyed the previous one, today only the campanile remains resting on the town hall.  The main wall is built in bricks, and is smoothened by a rose-window and cusps with graceful belfries. 
Particularly noteworthy features inside include: the canvas by Rodolfo Morgari, from the late 1800s, and the valuable Assumption of the Virgin with San Martino and Guido. The side-altars are dedicated to Sant’Anna, Santa Teresa, San Giovanni Bosco and the Holy Family. The minor apses represent the Immaculate and the Holy Heart (Sacro Cuore).

19th century.

The ex-church currently houses the Scarampi Foundation.  The oratory built in stone and brick with an irregular porch has a narrow façade trimmed by octagonal borders.
The chapel has a Greek cross with a curved apse, re-calling the parish church of Roccaverano. The central part is covered by a half-sphere cupola, and the roof was partly built using local Langa stone.

Century: XVIII

This Baroque church was built in 1729 by the architect Giacomo Carretto, a follower of Juvarra.

Century: XVII

The elegant 18th-century church still displays traces of its Baroque origins internally, with a marble altar with a convex altar piece. There are also frescoes from different eras.
The apse contains a painting - probably 17th century - depicting the patron saint, a medallion with a female saint, which could be 16th century, and an attractive Madonna feeding the Holy Child.

The parish church was built in 1914 wanted by Lorenzo del Ponte, an archpriest from Castel Boglione. Built on the original foundations of the previous church (as described in the eighteenth century), its entrance is positioned on an embankment; unfortunately the lime walls have been ruined by humidity.  It has a semi-lunar opening over the door, without vaults supported by planks under the roof.

The imposing building takes on a ecletic style, very different from the local typical building features.  It combines peculiarities linked with the neo-Gothic period, neo-Romanesque with baroque and neo-classical features. Inside, it has a nave with two side aisles built on a spacious plan and Latin cross style vaults; on the intersection with the wings there is a cupola, hidden by an octagonal form.

Century: XX

In Neo-classical style, it was built in 1903 on the site of the cemetery the castle inhabitants were once buried.

Century: XII-XIII

The steeple of the Romanesque Abbey church was subsequently transformed into a bell tower and joined to the castle by an aerial arched bridge.

The building, of which only the ruins remain, is made up of a Latin cross plan with apsidal side chapels. 

Connected to the ex-Benedictine convent, unfortunately destroyed and of which we only have fragmentary evidence, it also included small cells which over-looked the Tatorba valley.

Until 1903 it was still possible to celebrate mass inside.

Century: XX

The church was built in 1960 but conserves the original Romanesque brick steeple.

The church was built around 1450, as confirmed by the Gothic central arches, and subsequently re-built in the 17th, 18th and 20th centuries.

Century: XIV-XVIII

Originally 14th-century, it was completely re-built in 1752 with the new Baroque style added to pre-existing Romenesque-gothic features. Inside, there is a single nave with two side chapels. The stucco altar was built in 1758 and stands behind an attractive marble prayer rail. The stuccoes and frescoes on the ceiling are painted in delicate yet luminous colours. The building contains several interesting paintings and a 16th-century wooden crucifix.

The bell tower is 14th-century Romanesque and, with its four pinnacles, is unique in the entire Asti area.

The massive church was built in 1669 on the site of an older one which probably belonged to the Radicati family’s castle.

Bishop Enrico Bruno decided to build this church in 1509 and its design, illustrated in a painting, was attributed to Bramante.

The façade is tent-shaped and divided into three sections by diamonds into which are inserted a three-arched design containing several gilded stucco suns. Within the tympanum of the central arch there are two carved medallions in sandstone depicting the Annunciation. The central dome is supported by four massive stone pillars and still contains the signature of the artist Calosso, the artist who decorated it in 1893.

Century: XVIII

The parish church of St Bartholomew was built in 1699 on the site of a 16th-century one. In the church’s only lateral nave, an altar dedicated to St Rosario can be seen which contains an attractive statue of the Madonna in the central niche surrounded by fifteen small oils depicting the Mysteries of the Faith.

An 18th-century Baroque church.

The original church, situated within the castle walls and facing east, was built during the Middle Ages. Half way through the 17th century it was completely destroyed and was re-built in 1688.

From Asti, take the minor road from Cinaglio and Camerano. In Località Madonna, a chapel stands by the country crossroads which leads to San Bartolomeo: it takes about 20 minutes by foot.

The church is 15th-century and was first documented in 1471. It is Gothic in style with three naves and it has been extensively re-built over the centuries.

In the Baroque style (century: XVIII).

Baroque church (17th-19th century) containing paintings by the artist Moncalvo

Century: XIX

The church was built between 1829 and 1833 to take over from a previous church which was in too poor a state of repair for the local population to use. The civil engineer Ernesto Melano was in charge of proceedings. His severe architectural style included three altars, the main one of which is in fine marble, and an attractive coffered ceiling with a rich frieze beneath.

The parish church, situated at the top of the town, dated originally from the late 15th century but has been modified several times. The present-day building is an interesting example of Piedmontese Baroque with a steeple from the late 18th century and Rococo friezes.

The church is situated near a cemetery a few hundred metres south of the village along the Settime-Camerano Casasco road. It can be reached via a concrete stairway from the cemetery square.

Century: XIV

Built in the 14th century, it contains important works by the artist Moncalvo and his school.

Address: 2, Via Beata Vergine delle Grazie

Century: XII

How to get there: The church complex stands on a hill to the east of the town.

The church is 17th-century and contains a work by the 19th-century artist Pietro Ivaldi, known as ‘Il Muto’ (The Dumb One), and eight frescoed tiles by the painter Giovanni Crosio from Trino, dated 1631.

On the portal’s sandstone architrave there is a ‘tondo’ depicting St George and the dragon. The date of construction (1634) is also visible.

Situated on the top of the Colle Masio hill about 2 km south-west of the town; can be reached via the road SS 458 for Casalborgone: take the minor road on the left for San Giorgio.

The old, four-naved church was knocked down in 1897 and a new one built last century in an eclectic Neo-gothic style.

Century: XVI-XVII

The church of St John the Baptist was built on the site of a pre-existing 12th-century chapel during the 16th and 17th centuries.
It is rectangular in shape with traces of the original Romanesque features especially in the apse and partially preserved walls.
An interesting feature are the six 13th-century sepulchres identified within the church, which measure from between 1.50 m. by 3.50 m. to 2.50 m. by 3.75 m. The bell tower was modified during the 18th century. Inside the church we can admire the main altar and that dedicated to the Saintly Heart, the 19th-century of the Saintly Heart, the prayer rail and Holy Water bowl (both 17th-century), the statue of the Madonna of the Rosary, the organ built by Liborio Grisanti in 1763 and a large oil situated in the presbytery depicting the Madonna and child with various saints.

Century:  XVIII

Next to the church, built in 1695, is its steeple. This is 44.21 m. high, was built by the Antonelliana School, re-built in 1914, and presents many interesting architectural features.

Situated about 2 km north-west of Calamandrana: take the turning off the main road that goes from San Marzano Oliveto to Calamandrana.

The church of Saint John in Lanero inherited its name from an earlier church, demolished and re-built by the monks of St Francis in 1722 on a design by the architect of Robilant.

About 4 km north of Berzano San Pietro town centre. Take the road for Casalborgone and, once past the Falletto hamlet, turn left for San Giovanni. The church can be reached along a steep path passing alongside fields and woods.

The cemetery church was built in the thirteenth century. The Romanesque features integrate with the sixteenth century restoration and the nineteenth century reconstruction of the façade. Inside there are some of the most important Gothic style frescos to be found in the Astigiano territory.  The artist is identified as the Master from Roccaverano; eight panels depict the life of San Giovanni Battista; and four ribbed vaults representing the Evangelists with the Redeemer are located in the centre.

On the furthest wall, there are eight Apostles inserted into artificial niches with other four located on the side walls.

Century: XII

How to get there: Situated in the San Giulio hamlet about 3 km north of the village along the main road for Villanova.

Opening hours: Contact the parish priest, don Angelo Francia.

Century: XVII-XVIII

Built at the end of the 17th century, it was re-built during the mid-18th century by the architect Magnocavallo. It contains paintings by the Caccia School.

Building of the church began in 1682 and finished in 1694 with the plastering of the façade and the addition of a square pronaon. The façade demonstrates how the taste for the Renaissance style, with its harmony, rigour and elegance, persisted in the provinces up until the late 17th century.

This elegant and attractive 18th-century church contains a sumptuous marble altar.

Century: XII

How to get there: Situated about 1200 m east of the village: from here, take the road leading to the station, turning left after about 1 km onto an un-metalled road. The church stands on a hill at the end of a path through vineyards and fields.

Century: XVIII-XIX

The parish church had ancient origins but was re-built and modified during the 18th and 19th centuries. An attractive staircase in ‘Cumina’ stone leads up to the entrance.

The church is 18th century although the façade is modern and typically tent-shaped, like many churches in the Asti area: a rectangle to illustrate the presence of the nave internally.

Century: XVIII
Building started in 1755 on the site of an ancient church dedicated to the same patron saint. The present church is in the Piedmontese Baroque style with a brick façade containing geometric designs.

The church (XVIII century) was originally probably 12th century but re-built in the Baroque style. It contains a beautiful wooden chorus.

Century: XI-XII. Situated 800 m south-east of the town along the San Martino minor road, within the cemetery.

Century: XI

How to get there: Three kilometres south of Viarigi; situated on a hill.

The church is 12th-century, modified during the 17th century, and measures 4.30 m. by 3.90 m with a semicircular apse. The stone vaulting is half-bowl-shaped in the apse. The walls are ‘a sacco’, with alternating strips of brick and stone blocks. On the outside, there are suspended arches, ‘wolf’s tooth’ decorations, sculptures and capitals in both terracotta and stone. Within, there is a modern wooden platform with a spiral staircase.

Bernardo Vittone built this Baroque church in 1758, conserving only the original 13th-century Romanesque steeple.

The little church is known as the ‘Oratory of Saint Sebastian’ and was built around 1663 on the site of a more ancient edifice. Inside, there is a tribune with very original and brightly-coloured decorations.

The church is 18th-century and presents impressively simple and pure lines, with well-balanced internal volumes.

Century: XVIII-XIX

The church possesses a very harmonious hexagonal plan and was designed by Giovanni Matteo Zucchi in 1790. Inside, is a series of Baroque paintings of great interest.

Century: XII

How to get there: It is situated on the edge of the village on the site of an ancient cemetery which is now part of a private park – and in a position where it is practically impossible to observe the façade.

This church is 11th century, re-built during the 15th and 16th centuries. It measures 13.86 m. by 4.80 m. and is built of large stone blocks and stone alternated with brick. Externally, it is decorated with suspended stone arches on shaped brackets and, on the inside, with frescoes at the far end and on the south wall. Beneath the hall there is a crypt with a square sepulchre.

Opening hours: Closed Monday 25/12 e 1/1. Opening times: from Tuesday to Friday 9 am-1 pm and 3 pm-5 pm; Saturday 10am-1 pm and 3 pm-6pm; Sunday 10am-1 pm.

Century: XII

Built originally in the 15th century as chapel to the Counts of Castellero, it was enlarged in 1908.

The building of the church began in 1681 in Ligurian-Piedmontese Baroque style. There is a single nave with several side altars and a main altar with a presbytery and marble prayer rail, financed by Count Carlo Giacinto Alfieri. There are several frescoes and gilded stucco decorations of great beauty. The façade is early 20th century.

Century: XII. Next to the cemetery to the north-north-west of Albugnano centre towards Berzano.

Address:  Situated at the crossroads of the minor San Pietro road and the SS 457

Century: XII

How to get there: Situated to the north of Calliano at the crossroads between the San Pietro road and the SS 457 road.

Century: XII-XIX

How to get there: Situated in the San Pietro Cassaneo hamlet. From San Damiano: take the main Villanova road and, with the Rivasso hamlet to your left, take a winding road that leads up to the church.

The original oratory was built between 1629 and 1635, was demolished and then re-built between 1669 and 1736 - as parish records tell us.

The parish church bears its date of foundation on the southern wall (1673) and stands in the highest part of the village.

The parish church, in Baroque style, was built around the middle of the 17th century but originally dated from the 12th century. The façade is an example of simple Piedmontese Baroque.

The town of Canelli was first mentioned in 961 and the parish church of St Thomas probably already existed at that time, although it was first documented on 12th November 1156. Towards the end of the 17th century it was completely re-built, taking on its present-day appearance.

Century: XVIII

The Monferrato architect Francesco Ottavio Magnocavallo built this Baroque church in 1730, adding a monumental terracotta façade.

Century: XVIII

Built during the 18th century on the site of the previous ancient church

Century: XIII-XIX

Originally Gothic, it was re-built in the 17th century. The bell tower dates from 1840.

Century: XII

How to get there: Situated on the San Vittore hill to the south-east of Montemagno.

This 12th-century church is, unfortunately, in ruins. It is composed of an apse with its half-bowl-shaped vaulting and a steeple. The original building was probably rectangular. The bell tower is square, measuring 2.35 m per side. Given the building’s conditions, there are no internal decorations or furnishings. The walls are of stone blocks and brick.

The sanctuary situated in Caffi locality is a favourite destination for tourists and pilgrims, since the day in which there was an apparition of Our Lady to a young pastorelle born deaf.  Following the apparition, she miraculously began talking and spreading the message received from the Virgin Mary.  After that day, a small chapel was built, later modified and made larger to welcome the believers.

The building dates from the beginning of the 1900s, following the design of the Bolognese architect Gualandi, who also constructed the important cupolas located in the villages of Fontanile and Sezzadio. Inside the walls are richly decorated with votive offerings to remember the graces received.

The sixteenth century church, refurbished in the following period, as shown in the particular curvilinear form of the attic, has reduced arches and an entrance staircase built in stone. On the right-hand side is the sacristy with an external staircase, and on the opposite side the bell-tower and belfry.

The inside is built on a main nave completed by a rectangular apse with an oval rose window.  The façade is distinguished by a dedication to the Madonna della Neve.

Century: XVIII-XX

The church was built during the 18th century, although the façade and two lateral naves were added in the early 20th century. It is Neo-classical in design with Baroque decorations. It contains paintings, probably by the artist Moncalvo, and a 17th-century statue of the Madonna of the Rosary in painted wood. Behind the altar is a large painting depicting the Assumption with St Julia and St Peter.
At the far end of the left-hand nave is a plaster and canvas reproduction of the grotto of Lourdes. Six stained glass windows depict local country churches.

Century: XVIII. The parish church, originally Romanesque, was re-built in 1796.

Century: XVIII

The church was built at the end of the 18th century. On the inside, there is an impressive nave with bowl-vaulting and four side chapels. There are also three oils by Guglielmo Caccia, a large painting dedicated to the Assumption and two recently-restored paintings and dated 1773. The large organ is positioned on a walnut balcony with wooden tribune. Beside the church, is the chapel with relics and the art gallery with a fascinating collection of works, both sacred and profane.

It can be seen from the main Castello d’Annone-Nizza Monferrato road. Isolated and standing at the crossroads between this road and the minor one for Borioso, it is visible for its bright colours.

Century: XV

The little church contains a cycle of frescoes with a religious subject dated 1491.

Century: XII-XVII

Originally 12th century; re-built during the 17th century.

The church can be visited (the gate is unlocked).

How to get there: The remains of the church are found about 1 km north of Castelnuovo Don Bosco and can be reached via a pathway through the vineyards.

Situated 4 km south of the town in the Mondonio hamlet. Take the Castelnuovo-Gallareto road and turn right for Località Garesio. Carry on for about 1 km towards Località Rasetto. The church is about 200 m further on, near an isolated farm house.

Century: XII-XIII. From Turin take the road for Chieri and, once past the centre, the road for Mombello until you see indications for the Abbey. From Asti take the road for Chivasso; at the crossroads with the provincial road for Andezeno, turn right towards Albugnano.

Century: XVIII

The church was founded in the 18th century and presents a late Renaissance appearance. The interior, however, was ruined by the addition of numerous late Baroque features and the side naves were added in 1913. The very faded frescoes of St Felix and Mary Magdalen found on the façade are probably 18th century.

Century: XV-XVII

The original church, re-built in 1824, was built towards the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th century - as documented in historical records.

The church is found along the main Asti-Castelnuovo Don Bosco road. About 10 km from Asti turn towards Chiusano. The church is situated in a thickly wooded area on the right.

Century: XVI

The church was consecrated on 22nd May 1571. The late-Medieval design comprises three naves with brick columns and cubic capitals. The main nave is barrel-vaulted with ogees, and the side naves are cross-vaulted. The main altar, placed on a base with three steps, is dated 1803 and is of coloured marble.

This 18th-century Baroque church was re-built during the 19th century. Saint Giovanni Bosco was baptised here.

18th century.

How to get there: The church is situated in Casaglio hamlet. Take the state road 458 for Gallareto and turn left for Frazione Monina. The church is found along this un-metalled road after about 2 km.

Century: XVIII. The church is an attractive example of Baroque architecture, designed by Giovanni Maria Molino.

Century: XV

The church was probably founded at the end of the 15th century, although the steeple seems older. It has been restored several times and this has influenced its appearance.

During excavation work to renew the floor, openings were discovered, leading to two ossuaries and many other tombs containing bones and artefacts.
In the right-hand nave is an 18th-century wooden statue of the Madonna and child while the walls contain a ‘via crucis’ painted in 1837 by the artist Michelangelo Ramello. The organ was built by Master Collino in 1870.

Century: XVII

The church is in the Baroque style, particularly evident in the bell tower, which last section is decorated with small Corinthian columns on which semicircular lunettes with low arches rest. The interior is well-lit and simple, and contains some interesting paintings, including four attributed to the artist Guglielmo Caccia, also known as ‘Moncalvo’.

The church was originally 13th-century but was re-built from the foundations in the 15th century.

Found at the foot of a hill at the crossroads between the Casalborgone-Pralormo road and the Albugnano road.

This Baroque church was built during the early 18th century.

Its exterior is in brick and stone with a façade topped by a triangular tympanum and double diamonds ending in small decorated capitals. The high portal frames an attractive, carved wooden Baroque door. Inside, there are four large 19th-century paintings by G.B. Morelli. The attractive main altar is in multi-coloured marble and was built between 1768-70 by Pelagatta.

The parish church dates from the 1800s and has a white-plastered façade. Adjacent to the church is the brick bell tower.

Opening hours: Contact the parish priest don Angelo Francia.

Century: XIII-XVIII

The church has Medieval origins but was re-built during the 18th century in the Baroque style.

The present-day building was probably the result of re-building in 1676. It is rectangular in shape with a nave and side chapels dedicated to Saint Bovo and the suffrage of souls.

Century: XI

How to get there: Situated at the southern-most end of the village on a hill giving splendid views over the Tanaro valley. The hill, north side of the church and apse are covered in vegetation.

In Baroque style, it was built in 1684 with a high steeple.

Century: XVIII

18th-century.

Century: XVII-XIX

The majestic parish church was built in the 17th century and re-built several times during the 19th century.

Century: XIII-XVIII

The church, in Baroque style, was probably built on the site of a pre-existing chapel - in fact, local records indicate the presence of a parish church in 1202. Of the Gothic period, only the circular bell tower remains - once one of the castle towers, subsequently adapted as a steeple - while the chorus is 15th-century.

The church, originally 17th-century, was modified during the 18th and 19th centuries.

Century: XVIII

18th-century church.

Century: XVII

The parish church is in the Baroque style and was designed and built by Malabaila between 1646 and 1696. It is dedicated to St John the Baptist and St Lawrence.

Century: XVIII

Building of this lovely church took from 1729 to 1742. The inside is very ornate and there is a huge marble main altar.

Century: XX

20th century.

The church was built in 1700 on the site of a pre-existing Medieval chapel dedicated to St Stephen and still possesses a Romanesque steeple, dated 1474.

Sec.:  XVIII

The church was built at the beginning of the 18th century and dedicated to the Virgin Mary and the Saints Peter, Paul and Felix. It contains two important oils by the Baroque painter Guglielmo Caccia known as ‘Il Moncalvo’ who lived at the end of 16th-beginning of the 17th century.

Century: XVIII-XX

Re-built in Baroque style from the foundations upwards in 1766, the church was further enlarged in 1933 by expanding the front part. It was also adorned with attractive decorations and the marble altar of the Sacred Heart, the Saintly Virgin, St Joseph and St Giovanni Bosco. The steeple was also modified, raising it to 46 m. in height in a slim and elegant form matching the church front.

The parish church dates from the end of the 17th century and is of a certain interest.

Century: XII

This church, re-built during the 19th and 20th centuries, possesses a Romanesque steeple dating from the 11th or 12th century. On the inside, are fragments of a 10th-century Romanesque floor mosaic, a 17th-century altar piece and the sepulchre of Aleramo, the first Marquis of Monferrato.

Opening hours: By appointment only.

The underground area of the castle houses a permanent exhibition dedicated to ‘contadino’ - or peasant - life from times past.
This museum, called ‘L Ciar’ contains objects from peasant life and children’s toys, plus reconstructions of farms, homes, schools, prisons and animal sheds.
Each object has been carefully chosen for its authenticity. The architects Elena Musso and Simona Paniati are the authors of the information tables containing many interesting facts on the architecture and history of the castle’s crypts.

Shut for restoration.

Telephone: +39 0141-953040

Opening hours: Booking required.

A permanent exhibition of written documents, objects and other items encapsulating the life (including his family of origin, childhood, poetic and literary achievements, political and forensic career) of Angelo Brofferio.

Opening hours: Open from 3 pm-7 pm every day except Monday.

How to get there: From Turin take the A 21 motorway and exit at Asti Est. Take the road for San Damiano and then the turning for Cisterna. From Milan: take the A7 motorway as far as Alessandria, then the A21 exiting at Asti Ovest. Follow signs for San Damiano, then Cisterna.

Website: http://www.museoartiemestieri.it

Booking required.

Website: www.bersano.it

Opening hours: Closed for restoration work.

Website: http://www.astiantica.com

Opening hours: Closed for restoration work.

Built by Benedetto Alfieri.

Sunday 10am-midday/3 pm-6 pm or book.

Opening hours: Open from Tuesday to Sunday 10 am-1 pm/ 3pm-6 pm - summer 10 am-1 pm/4 pm-7 pm Closed Mondays.

Website: http://www.comune.asti.it/cultura 

Opening hours: Open 10am-12pm / ì2,30pm-5pm in winter and 10am-12pm / 2pm-6pm in summer Closed Monday.

Website: www.colledonbosco.it

Email: [email protected]

Opening hours: From Monday to Friday 8 am to 2 pm.

Guided tours by appointment from Monday to Friday.

Website: www.contratto.it

The ethnographic, herbs and territory of Langa Astigiana Museum was founded, because all the mountain communities belonging to this area wanted it. Its aim is twofold: not only the museum is intended to present the whole Langa’s territory, but also to promote its local products, to all those people might be interested in .
Those who want to acquire more information about this area can visit the exposition, which has been organized in a restructured area. You can find it within Cascina Vignale in  Roccaverano.

The ex position encompasses  the following topics:

• Welcoming
• Three sections:
  first section: “Andar per Langa”, presentazione del territorio della comunità montana. ( “Visitig the Langa: introducing the territory and it mountain communities”).
  Second section: ”La produzione nella Langa Astigiana”, l’allevamento della capra e la produzione della Robiola nel tempo.  “ Production in the Langa’s Territory, the breeding of goat and the production of Robiola in thein the course of history”
  Third section: “Le erbe nel territorio della Langa Astigiana”, storia di piante mediche ed essenze profumate. ( Herbs in the Langa’s territory, an outlook of medical plants and essences”
• The conference room
• Info point 
• Signals  indicating the paths and helping the visitors to know where they are.

You can visit the museum  after arranging a date.

Opening hours: Booking required.

The Gallery of Modern Art, which also houses the Public Library and the Historical Archives, contains a collection of paintings and drawings, primarily by Italian artists from the early 20th century, plus a collection of objects from Asia and central Africa.

Guided tours by appointment from Monday to Sunday.

Website: www.gancia.it

Open from May to September every Sunday afternoon from 3 pm to 6 pm. From October to April by appointment only.

Email: [email protected]

Opening hours: From Monday to Friday 9 am-1 pm. Tuesday and Thursday also 3 30 pm-5 30 pm.

Opening hours: Opening: from Monday to Friday 9 am-1 pm; Mon-Tues-Weds-Thurs also 3 pm-6 pm.

Opening hours: Booking required.

Website: http://www.badoglio.it

E-mail: [email protected];

Opening hours: By appointment only.

Website: http://www.israt.it

Dedicated to the mother of Saint Giovanni Bosco.

Opening hours: Closed Mondays, 25/12 and 1/1.Opening times: from Tuesday to Friday 9 am-1 pm and 3 pm-5 pm; Saturday 10 am-1 pm 3 pm-6 pm Sunday 10 am-1pm.

The history of distillation and rural culture.

Website: www.bocchino.it

Telephone: 347-9033863

Opening hours: Booking required.

The Museum, founded by the ‘Ecomuseum’ project active within the Asti Basso Monferrato area, is uniquely dedicated to the history of tools and methods used for working wood.

Opening hours: By appointment only

Opening hours: Booking required.

18th-century work by Benedetto Alfieri.

Opening hours: Summer opening times: 9 am-12 30 pm / 2pm-6 30 pm winter opening: 9am-12 30 pm/ 2 pm-5 pm.

Opening hours: By appointment only.

Website: http://www.arazzeriascassa.com 

Opening hours: Booking required.

18th-century work by Benedetto Alfieri.

Opening hours: Mon, Weds, Fri, Sat 8,10-13,50 Tues, Thurs: 8 10 - 16 50.

Booking required; open Monday-Friday 8am-12pm.

Website: www.sugarhouse.it

Opening hours: Booking required.

This unique museum testifies to the important cultural heritage of saddle-making. It is divided into three sections: tools, materials and made objects. Within the museum, the methods and techniques of the saddle-maker’s art are illustrated and the conditions of the workplace illustrated. Each of the various sectors where the saddle-maker’s art was practised are explained, including agriculture, war, transport and so on and are accompanied by historical archives and other documentation illustrating the entomology and geneaology of the art.

History and traditions relating to the truffle, with the possibility of visiting natural truffle groves.

The sun dials are to be found distributed over the walls of the houses in the villages of Montiglio, Colcavagno and Scandaluzza. For more information, consult the Comune di Montiglio web site.

The magistrates’s court and public library are now situated here in addition to public gardens, presumably on the remains of a pre-existing castle.

This beautiful entrance gate is what remains of the ancient defensive lancet arched walls perfectly kept in its original form.

The entrance leads straight into the mediaeval hamlet, very carefully looked after with its houses placed along the main lane, built entirely in stone.  On some of the doors we can identify important emblems belonging to the royal families, such as the Del Carretto.

The first market, as re-called by an inscription, took place in 1640 in the Bormida valley, under the porticos near the square, and is remembered as an important meeting place.  The porticos supported by pillars are constructed in stone with round headed arches and cross brick vaults.

Interesting is the paving, built using local stone, and the building overlooking the porticos.

At the base of the slender bell-tower built in bricks with decorated white marble openings  and a simple belfry, we find this important entrance gate, which leads into the old part of the village.

From here one can follow the picturesque lane, along by the town hall and parish, that joins with the main square and the road that once belonged to the defence walls.

The gate, along with the apse’s base are testimonial  features of the old walls.

The bridge represents one of the most important civil engineering constructions of the valley, and finds its equivalent in the similar bridge at the Abbey of Saint Quintino located in Spigno. Built in the thirteenth century by the Benedictine monks, it has a humped back-bridge, and is over-looked by a chapel once used as a guard post, that allowed to control the commercial traffic flowing between the Langa region and the sea. 

For a long period of time, it proved to be an extremely strategic construction, as it was the only bridge where traffic could travel all year round, by paying a tax to a guard.

Located in a favourable position, on a hill-top surrounded by vine-yards, Turot once functioned as a watch and control spot over the neighbouring valleys.  Today, it still functions as a panoramic spot over-looking the Bormida valley, and is also a favourite place for those who wish to meditate.  Locals say that the statesman, Giuseppe Saracco, President of the Council of Ministers in 1900, used to retire here to prepare his public speeches.

The limited dimensions of the layout reveal only two spaces: one on the ground floor and one on the first floor.  On the outside, the only important feature is the decoration on the large cornice.

The small village of Montabone is situated on a hill-top, with its houses that wind down, along and around the hill’s shape.  There once existed a draw-bridge called “Peisino” to enter the village which was situated between the old walls and the entrance; outside the walls, the old church dedicated to San Tommaso with a cemetery is located.

The castle was situated on the highest part of the village, but reduced to a few ruins, was later destroyed along with the Gothic tower.

Of particular interest are the first row of buildings around the ex-castle’s square, and the second row where the Parish Church of San Antonio Abate is situated.