Monte Pelpi (Emilia Romagna)
Encyclopedia
Monte Pelpi is a mountain 1,495 metres (4,905 ft) high located in the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines in northern Italy. The mountain overlooks the towns of Bedonia
to the south and Bardi
to the north, and rises like a cone between the Taro
, Toncina and Ceno
valleys. The vegetation is very diverse with forests consisting of beech
, oak
, hazel
, hornbeam
and black aspen and includes rare species of arnica
s, orchid, daffodils, gentian
, daphne
and anemone
s. The forest gives way to a 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) stretch of grassland
at the summit on which stands a large steel cross. It is said that the mountain protects the towns of Bedonia
and Compiano
from the cold northern winds during winter. The view from this peak exceeds that of the taller Monte Penna
nearby and it offers an extraordinary panorama of both valleys and the other peaks of the Liguran-Emilian Apennines, ranging from Monte Penna
, Monte Tomarlo, Monte Maggiorasca
, Monte Ragola. On clear days it is possible to observe the Mediterranean Sea
.
Sambuceto and Strela are two small villages that are located along one of the roads that wind across the mountain. The area is notorious for massacres committed by the Nazis during World War II
in retaliation for the intense partisan
activity. Around Monte Pelpi are the villages of: Ca' Scapini, Farfanaro, Caprile, Costa Agucchia, Pian dell'Asse, Costa di Cereseto, Pareto di Credarola, Credarola, Granelli, Lago Lobbia, Pilati, Monti, Castagna, Ceio, Libbia, Masanti di Sotto, Masanti di Sopra, Cavignaca, Capella Carpana, Sambuceto, Belli (Hydro Electric Power station.)
Pelpi is known for its crystal clear spring water which has an alkaline-sulphurous quality and is renowned for its healing properties. There are many streams that run through the slopes of the mountain, and the mineral water which flows from the north-western slope is bottled in plants at Masanti. The beneficial qualities of these waters were quoted by the early 19th century travel writer Captain Antonio Boccia as "commended for curing many ills of those who bathe in its waters." The Milanese
poet Francesco Piccinelli also wrote in his description of the Taro
and Ceno
Valleys (1617) "drinking the water, heals all conditions of the throat." During 2009 there was a dispute between a committee of locals and the mineral water company Lynx/Norda, who were concerned that the company would drain the aquifers within the mountain causing the supply to run dry for the personal consumption of the Masanti residents. Every year in mid-August there is an organised hike up Monte Pelpi, as part of the "festa di San Gioacchino" (festival dedicated to Saint Joachim,) held in the nearby rural village of Cavignaca.
. Costa instigated the search to find appropriate funding and resources for the project. In 1953, his unerring 'instinct' led him to the famous Falck steelworks at Sesto San Giovanni
(Milan
.) The lattice structure was donated by the Falck family in memory of the company's founder Enrico Falck, who died some time before. Today it is still one of the tallest crosses placed on any mountain, 22 meters tall and 4 metric tons (4.4 ST) in weight. In celebration of its fiftieth anniversary, a plaque has been replaced which was an identical copy of the lost original 1955 plaque, that commemorated the construction and benefactors. The inscription, translated from the original Italian, reads:
Bedonia
Bedonia is a comune within the Province of Parma, in Emilia-Romagna .- History :The communal territory was already settled during the Neolithic age, and later was a Roman colony, under the name of Bitunia....
to the south and Bardi
Bardi
Bardi can refer to:*Bardi, Emilia-Romagna, a city in the province of Parma, northern Italy*Bardi, Western Australia, a town in Australia*Bardi bush, an Australian plant, Acacia victoriae...
to the north, and rises like a cone between the Taro
Taro
Taro is a common name for the corms and tubers of several plants in the family Araceae . Of these, Colocasia esculenta is the most widely cultivated, and is the subject of this article. More specifically, this article describes the 'dasheen' form of taro; another variety is called eddoe.Taro is...
, Toncina and Ceno
Ceno
The Ceno is a 63 km-long tributary of the Taro River, flowing entirely the Province of Parma, northern Italy. It joins the Taro on its left side at Fornovo....
valleys. The vegetation is very diverse with forests consisting of beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
, oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
, hazel
Hazel
The hazels are a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae, though some botanists split the hazels into a separate family Corylaceae.They have simple, rounded leaves with double-serrate margins...
, hornbeam
Hornbeam
Hornbeams are relatively small hardwood trees in the genus Carpinus . Though some botanists grouped them with the hazels and hop-hornbeams in a segregate family, Corylaceae, modern botanists place the hornbeams in the birch subfamily Coryloideae...
and black aspen and includes rare species of arnica
Arnica
Arnica is a genus with about 30 perennial, herbaceous species, belonging to the sunflower family . The genus name Arnica may be derived from the Greek arna, "lamb", in reference to the soft, hairy leaves....
s, orchid, daffodils, gentian
Gentian
Gentiana is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the Gentian family , tribe Gentianeae and monophyletic subtribe Gentianinae. With about 400 species, it is considered a large genus.-Habitat:...
, daphne
Daphne (plant)
Daphne is a genus of between 50 and 95 species of deciduous and evergreen shrubs in the family Thymelaeaceae, native to Asia, Europe, and north Africa...
and anemone
Anemone
Anemone , is a genus of about 120 species of flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae in the north and south temperate zones...
s. The forest gives way to a 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) stretch of grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
at the summit on which stands a large steel cross. It is said that the mountain protects the towns of Bedonia
Bedonia
Bedonia is a comune within the Province of Parma, in Emilia-Romagna .- History :The communal territory was already settled during the Neolithic age, and later was a Roman colony, under the name of Bitunia....
and Compiano
Compiano
Compiano is a medieval walled town in the Taro Valley , a 50 minute-drive to the Ligurian Sea and to Parma.The top of Compiano's hill is home to the medieval Castello di Compiano.-History:...
from the cold northern winds during winter. The view from this peak exceeds that of the taller Monte Penna
Monte Penna
Monte Penna is a mountain on the border between Liguria and Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, part of the Ligurian Appennines. It is included in the Natural Regional Park of the Aveto, and overlooks the Val di Taro; the sources of both the Taro and Ceno Rivers are located in Monte Penna's slope.The...
nearby and it offers an extraordinary panorama of both valleys and the other peaks of the Liguran-Emilian Apennines, ranging from Monte Penna
Monte Penna
Monte Penna is a mountain on the border between Liguria and Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, part of the Ligurian Appennines. It is included in the Natural Regional Park of the Aveto, and overlooks the Val di Taro; the sources of both the Taro and Ceno Rivers are located in Monte Penna's slope.The...
, Monte Tomarlo, Monte Maggiorasca
Monte Maggiorasca
Monte Maggiorasca is a mountain on the border between Liguria and Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, the highest peak of the Ligurian Appennines....
, Monte Ragola. On clear days it is possible to observe the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
.
Sambuceto and Strela are two small villages that are located along one of the roads that wind across the mountain. The area is notorious for massacres committed by the Nazis during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in retaliation for the intense partisan
Italian resistance movement
The Italian resistance is the umbrella term for the various partisan forces formed by pro-Allied Italians during World War II...
activity. Around Monte Pelpi are the villages of: Ca' Scapini, Farfanaro, Caprile, Costa Agucchia, Pian dell'Asse, Costa di Cereseto, Pareto di Credarola, Credarola, Granelli, Lago Lobbia, Pilati, Monti, Castagna, Ceio, Libbia, Masanti di Sotto, Masanti di Sopra, Cavignaca, Capella Carpana, Sambuceto, Belli (Hydro Electric Power station.)
Pelpi is known for its crystal clear spring water which has an alkaline-sulphurous quality and is renowned for its healing properties. There are many streams that run through the slopes of the mountain, and the mineral water which flows from the north-western slope is bottled in plants at Masanti. The beneficial qualities of these waters were quoted by the early 19th century travel writer Captain Antonio Boccia as "commended for curing many ills of those who bathe in its waters." The Milanese
Milanese
Milanese is the central variety of the Western Lombard language spoken in the city and province of Milan....
poet Francesco Piccinelli also wrote in his description of the Taro
Taro
Taro is a common name for the corms and tubers of several plants in the family Araceae . Of these, Colocasia esculenta is the most widely cultivated, and is the subject of this article. More specifically, this article describes the 'dasheen' form of taro; another variety is called eddoe.Taro is...
and Ceno
Ceno
The Ceno is a 63 km-long tributary of the Taro River, flowing entirely the Province of Parma, northern Italy. It joins the Taro on its left side at Fornovo....
Valleys (1617) "drinking the water, heals all conditions of the throat." During 2009 there was a dispute between a committee of locals and the mineral water company Lynx/Norda, who were concerned that the company would drain the aquifers within the mountain causing the supply to run dry for the personal consumption of the Masanti residents. Every year in mid-August there is an organised hike up Monte Pelpi, as part of the "festa di San Gioacchino" (festival dedicated to Saint Joachim,) held in the nearby rural village of Cavignaca.
The cross
There is a large steel cross standing 22 metres (72.2 ft) high, built on 16 October 1955 at the summit. This steel cross replaces a wooden cross in the same location which was built earlier in the 20th century. The cross was the initiative of Bishop Renato Costa, and the former alumni of the seminary of BedoniaBedonia
Bedonia is a comune within the Province of Parma, in Emilia-Romagna .- History :The communal territory was already settled during the Neolithic age, and later was a Roman colony, under the name of Bitunia....
. Costa instigated the search to find appropriate funding and resources for the project. In 1953, his unerring 'instinct' led him to the famous Falck steelworks at Sesto San Giovanni
Sesto San Giovanni
Sesto San Giovanni is a comune in the Milan metropolitan area, located in the province of Milan and region of Lombardy in Italy. Its railway station is the northernmost stop on the Milan Metro M1 line. The city is informally referred to as "Sesto"...
(Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
.) The lattice structure was donated by the Falck family in memory of the company's founder Enrico Falck, who died some time before. Today it is still one of the tallest crosses placed on any mountain, 22 meters tall and 4 metric tons (4.4 ST) in weight. In celebration of its fiftieth anniversary, a plaque has been replaced which was an identical copy of the lost original 1955 plaque, that commemorated the construction and benefactors. The inscription, translated from the original Italian, reads: