The hamlet of Triora hides a mysterious charm. The ancient village of the Ligurian Alps, where the silence and mountain air of the Argentina valley dominate, has always been a way station and strategic point of the western Ligurian hinterland.
Apart from being an enchanting medieval centre, Triora is also known for an important process of witchcraft that took place between 1587 and 1589. As a witch country, it spread all its magic atmosphere and charm all over its streets.
Visiting the village, walking through the “caruggi”, i.e. the old and narrow streets among the houses, an then the vaults and the arches, together with dark passages and shady colonnades, and finally the typical portals made of black stone, give the visitor emotions and suggestions.
If you want to discover all the magical aspects of Triora, you cannot miss a visit at the Ethnography and Witchcraft Museum, where you can discover the farming culture is united to the mysteries of the underground, where the prisons are located as well as the museum of witchcraft, in whose rooms some interrogation scenes and witches’ activities are simulated, and in which you can find historical documents and other objects. Then, in order to remember the long history of the village, you can see the part dedicated to archaeology.
Other important points of interest are the municipal bakery, the so called “Soprana fountain”, the church of Santa Caterina, the church of Sant’Agostino, built in the seventeenth Century, which houses a wooden cluster of Our Lady of Mercy, Piazza Tommaso Reggio where there is also the Stella palace, which has been for many centuries the centre of power in the village, and finally ancient Collegiata, i.e. the cluster of building in which you can the Baptism of Christ, painted in the late 14th century by Sienese Taddeo di Bartolo. It is also worth a visit to the church of San Bernardino, which offers a beautiful cycle of 15th Century frescoes.
Triora is also known for its bread, which as also been certified as a traditional product (PAT Prodotto Agroalimentare Tradizionale). Triora’s bread is prepared with soft wheat type 1, beer yeast, salt, food bran and water. It has a long shelf life and it is delicious when sliced and eaten with Bruss, the typical cheese of the Imperia hinterland.
Formerly known as the granary of the Republic of Genoa, Triora had a unique municipal backery in Vico del Forno, where the bread was cooked for evry family once a week. Even today, it is the only bakery which produces the bread of Triora, still using the traditional way.
