Excursion on Lake Mergozzo
Lago di Mergozzo is a small subalpine lake in northern Italy, west of Lago Maggiore and north of Lago d’Orta, at the mouth of the Val d’Ossola in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Piedmont. In ancient times it was the extreme point of the short north-western arm of Lago Maggiore, formed by glaciation.
Mergozzo is one of the most picturesque villages on the shores of Lake Lago Maggiore. Its ancient stone houses squeeze together, separated only by narrow passages. The central square of Mergozzo is decorated with a huge ancient elm tree – according to historical documents, it is at least 400 years old. Today this tree, which is completely empty inside, is called “the monumental tree of Piedmont”.
Mergozzo was inhabited in antiquity, as evidenced by the exhibits collected in the local Antique Museum, which date back to the Bronze Age. There you can also see ancient tools once used to extract and shape marble from Candoglio.
Excursion with a visit to the marble quarry:
Lake Mergozzo, Lake Maggiore’s small neighbour.
The excursion begins with a walk around the town and the lakeside promenade. Then you travel by car to the town of Ornavasso, where there is a marble quarry, from which the Duomo Cathedral in Milan was built. It is a very unusual place: a long gallery (about 200 metres) leads to a huge hall completely carved in marble. Often concerts are organised in this peculiar museum-quarry, and during the Christmas period Father Christmas moves there. A special tourist train from Ornavasso takes children there, who can give letters with requests for presents to Father Christmas personally. Comfortable shoes and warm clothes are recommended for this excursion (the temperature in the cave is around 10 degrees all year round).
Excursion with visit to the marble workshop:
Visit the town of Mergozzo, walk through its ancient streets and promenade, drive (10 min.) and visit the marble workshop.
Unfortunately, this beautiful and easy to work material is very fragile and short-lived. This is why the Duomo Cathedral in Milan is in a constant process of restoration. The craftsmen will show us how marble is processed, which part of the cathedral they are working on at the moment, and how modern processing techniques differ from ancient ones.
