Comune Montaldo Bormida

piazza Papa Giovanni XXIII, 1 - 15010 Montaldo Bormida (AL)
Tel. +39 0143 85141
E-mail: info@comune.montaldo.al.it
http://www.comune.montaldo.al.it

There used to be a castle in the upper part of the village. The building was probably destroyed in the 16th century and part of the remains used to build the current parish church, which stands a short distance away. It was built in 1686 and dedicated to Saint Michael the Archangel. The facade is neoclassical, the interior is baroque and features a single nave; it is the only church in which the painter “il Muto” signed and dated two frescoes, the Last Supper and the Nativity. Descending the village, we glimpse Palazzo Schiavina, documented since 1673. It was the residence of the lords of Montaldo, to which the most powerful families of Genoa belonged. In 1878, it was purchased by the Schiavina family who added the arcade, terrace and garden. A short distance away, we see the Oratory of San Rocco. There is no information on its construction except for the date of 1600, engraved on the facade. A plaque remembers the plague epidemic of 1854, which the population overcame thanks to the Saint’s intercession. Taking a road on the right, we enter Parco Dotto, built in the early 20th century. It has an irregular shape, with terracing and a long pergola; it is also the start or endpoint of the green route that connects Montaldo Bormida with Trisobbio. Exiting Montaldo, in the hamlet of Gaggina, we find the Church dedicated to Our Lady of Carmel, built in 1880 at the request of the residents.