Tour Guide of Serramazzoni

HOW TO REACH SERRAMAZZONI     

The town of Serramazzoni is located in the  Province of Modena, in the mountains of Frignano.   The municipal territory covers an area of 9.3 square   kilometers at an elevation of 791 meters above sea   level, and borders on the towns of Prignano sulla   Secchia, Pavullo, Polinago, Marano, Sassuolo, and   Maranello. The telephone area code for   Serramazzoni is 0536 and the postal code is 41028.   The population of the town is 7163. To reach   Serramazzoni, take Route SS 12, which is also   known as the "Nuova Estense" highway. This road   runs all the way to the Abetone Pass, connecting the   Upper Modenese Apennines with Tuscany. When   coming from Maranello, take the "Giardini"   national highway.     

A HISTORICAL PROFILE     

Serramazzoni is a fairly young town. It was not   until the roads called Via Vandelli and Via   Giardini were built in 1749 and 1776   respectively, that a village developed on this   mountain ridge. We find the area mentioned in   the Statutes of Modena in 1327 as "Serra de   Legorzano.   The fourteenth-century statutes included the   obligation to obey the laws of Modena for people   living below Serra de Legorzano.   The heads of families were required to attend the   Feast of the 31st of January for three days,   bringing with them a large candle in homage of   San Geminiano, the patron saint of Modena.   Taxes for the people living below Serra de   Legorzano were lower than taxes for those living   above the ridge. If people from above the ridge   wished to live in Modena, they were required to   pay a special tax, while those from below the   ridge were exempt.   Thus we see that Serra de Legorzano was a   boundary line, not a town. It was never   mentioned in old records as a town before the   construction of Via Giardini.   The town took on importance and became an   independent municipality only in 1860, at which   time it was called the "Municipality of   Monfestino in Serramazzoni". It has been known   as "Serramazzoni" since 1948. The history of the territory centers around   the Monfestino Castle. We do not know when   the castle was built. The oldest part of it, still   partially standing today, was once made up of a   tall, square tower surrounded by massive walls   made of local stone. It is almost certain that the   strategic position of the castle, perched on a cliff   overlooking the plains below, delayed penetration   into this mountain region by the Lombards for   about two hundred years. After the fall of the   Lombards, the Franks took over the area, and the   independence enjoyed up until that time was lost.   The upper part of the territory became known as   Frignano, while the lower part was called Terra   della Balugola, and became the property of the   Church of Modena, which gave it in fief to the Da   Balugola family.   The members of this family held important   offices in the Church of Modena for centuries and   obtained many privileges. In 1239, after the   Savignano army from Bologna had advanced   into the foothills of the Apennines, the Da   Balugola castle of Farneta was burned down.   From that time on, the Da Balugola family   gradually lost their power and prestige, and the   entire fief was eventually occupied by the   Savignano, who entered the Monfestino Castle   and held it until 1364. They officially governed   Monfestino until 1406 when, after innumerable   uprisings, Nicolò d'Este III sent his army to   squelch them. They were taken as prisoners to   Ferrara, and the victorious captain, Uguccione   Contrari, was rewarded with the Monfestino fief   in addition to Vignola, which had been granted   him in 1401. The Contrari dynasty died out in   1575, and Vignola and Monfestino were annexed   to the Duchy of Ferrara and sold to the   Boncompagni family in 1577. They ruled it until   1796, when the feudal system was abolished   under Napoleon. During the occupation by   Napoleon's army (1796 - 1814) and throughout   the Restoration (1814 - 1859), many changes   were made in the Monfestino territory. By 1859,   Monfestino had lost its important strategic role   to the village that lay along the road connecting   Modena to Tuscany and the rest of Europe:   Serramazzoni.     Regarding the origin of the name of   this town, the geographical term "serra" means   "barrier or mountain chain that stretches for   some distance without interruption". The town   lies on the mountain ridge that goes from Torre   della Bastiglia to Mount Ravaglia, and creates a   real barrier for anyone climbing the mountain   from the plains. The Mazzoni family, after   whom the town was named, continued to live in   Serramazzoni and Ligorzano until the 1870's.   They owned most of the land in the area that   stretched from old Ligorzano to Serra de   Legorzano. Domenico Mazzoni built one of the   first houses in Piazza della Repubblica in   Serramazzoni. A very old village found higher   up the ridge than Serramazzoni is still called   "Casa Mazzoni" today.      


A TOUR OF THE TOWN     

- ROCCA SANTA MARIA 

This is one of the oldest, most beautiful churches   in the mountains of Modena.   It was built out of local sandstone, on a spot   overlooking the plains.   The church is laid out in the shape of a basilica,   with a nave and two side aisles divided by broad   rounded arches set on four columns and four low,   rounded half-columns.   The church was part of a fortress that was once   known as the Catonian Castle.   In 1038, the Bishop of Modena gave the castle   with all its lands and the church to Marquis   Bonifacio of Tuscany III, father of Countess   Mathilde of Canossa.       

- MONFESTINO   

Four kilometers from Serramazzoni along a   scenic road, we come across Monfestino.   The village and its castle are one of the most   important parts of the history of this area.   We do not know when the castle was built, but   the oldest part of it was definitely a square tower.   The castle has been renovated and restored to its   original splendor.   Although we cannot enter it, we can admire its   round towers and massive walls while walking   down a green pathway to a spot from where we   can see the highest peaks in the   Apennines and the white glaciers of the   Alps. At night, the plains below are lit with   thousands of lights.       MONTAGNANA   The outlying village of Montagnana is located   along Via Giardini, about 10 kilometers from   Serramazzoni and 7 kilometers from Maranello.   The church in the town is dedicated to St.   Andrew.   It was built in 1883 and has the oldest bell in the   Province of Modena, on which one may read the   inscription "the year of Our Lord 1262".       

- FAETO   

This is a little village located 4 kilometers from Serramazzoni, at the end of a road that climbs to   869 meters above sea level. It is surrounded by centuries-old oak trees and   chestnut groves, and offers the visitor an   unequaled view. Paradise Park is located about one kilometer   from Faeto.       

- VALLE   

This village is located 6 kilometers from   Serramazzoni and 3 kilometers from the "Nuova   Estense" highway, in a green valley. The entire village, which has important   buildings dating back to the sixteenth century, is   currently being renovated.       

- PAZZANO   

Here we find the Oratory of San Rocco, which   was built by survivors of the plague in 1630.   The village served as inspiration for the poet and   writer Guido Cavani of Modena from 1940 to   1960. He described the place in his novel "Zebio Cotal".       

- SAN DALMAZIO   

This is located along the road from   Serramazzoni to Marano, 7 kilometers from Serramazzoni. The Gentilizi home is located in the center of the   village, as proof of how old the village is; this old   "tower house" dates back to the year 1474. A small memorial in the village square serves to   commemorate San Dalmazio's fallen soldiers   and the emigrants from San Dalmazio who died   in a mine in Dawson, Illinois in 1913.      

- VARANA - CAMPODOLIO  

This is an outlying village with two names. Varana comes from the Roman name Varus, who   was a Roman landowner. Campodolio is a more recent name, which   derived from the name for a type of grass that is grown here for forage.       

- SELVA   

Traveling down Via Giardini towards Pavullo, we turn right 4 kilometers after Serramazzoni to   take the road to Selva.