Art And History

Biandrate Castle of San Giorgio

The origins of the San Giorgio Canavese Castle are in a complex of Medieval buildings built for defensive purposes and then transformed throughout the centuries to adapt it to subsequent requirements. Normally you can distinguish a more antique building, presumably from the XII-XIV centuries, with only very few traces remaining, and a more recent one attributed to the XV-XVI centuries.

The Vercelli and Ivrea Bishops, the Monferrato Marquise and maybe even the …

Credenza Palace

The Credenza Palace, build in terracotta with two floor pointed arch portico with pointed windows, was probably built around 1300 to give a new seat for the Municipality Council. Next it became the headquarters of the Credendari, the Councillors of the free Municipality of Ivrea of the XIV century.

Culture Department

Ivrea Municipality

Ducal Castle of Agliè

Formerly known as the San Martino Fortress, the castle of Medieval origin, in the middle of the 17th century was transformed into a Manor by literate count Filippo San Martino d’Agliè, with works entrusted to Carlo di Castellamonte. In 1764 the residence was purchases by the Savoia family and rebuilt according to a project by Ignazio Birago di Borgaro.

Abandoned after the Napoleonic invasion, the Agliè castle flourished once again in the 19th century, due to the …

Il Meleto Villa

The Il Meleto of Agliè Villa, called this way because the entrance driveway and the surrounding land, were cultivated as an orchard, it was the summer residence of the poet Guido Gozzano. The Building, dating back to the second half of the 19th century, was property of Senator Massimo Mautino. The villa was donated by the Senator on occasion of the marriage of his daughter Deodata with engineer Fausto Gozzano, and was used as a summer residence for the family after …

Ivrea Castle

The current structure of the Ivrea Castle, located in the high section of the city, in proximity of the Duomo, is the result of subsequent transformations and reconstructions that however maintained the typical character of fortified architecture.

The first construction phase (1358-1394) involved the West end of the Castle, with the main or “maschio” tower, and the North tower, connected by a  boundary wall, that was followed by the construction of two more towers …

Marini Palace

Inside the original Medieval village, in proximity of the gate towards Ivrea, you will find the Palazzo Marini building complex, made of a stately section towards the South and a rustic portion towards the North. The residential portion consists of a ground floor, a first floor and an attic and, as with most Borgofranco buildings, it does not have a cellar, due to the marshy ground.

On the side of the entrance hall, the noble staircase puts the portico in …

Masino Castle

Perched on a hill, in the enchanted scenario of the Morainic amphitheater of Ivrea, you will find the Marino Castle, whose construction goes back to the 11th century, commissioned by the prestigious Valperga family. Due to its strategic position, which allowed it to control a vast territory between Ivrea and Valle d’Aosta, the castle was, from the beginning, at the centre of numerous battles where the protagonists were the Savoia, the Acaia, the Visconti, the same …

Mazzè Castle

In the romantic historical centre of Mazzè, overlapping antique Roman ruins, you will find the Valperga Castle, built at the beginning of the XIV century by the Valperga Counts, in order to defend their estates, disputed by the Marchesi of Monferrato and the Counts of Savoia, rebuilt in modern times in a Neo-gothic style.  In addition to the antique Medieval origin castle, another one was added as a manor home. 

Recently restored, the castle was given back its …

Museo d'Arte Contemporanea all'Aperto di Maglione (Open Air Contemporary Art Museum of Maglione) (MACAM)

The museum was established in 1985 based on an ide of Maurizio Corgnati to spread and promote contemporary art. Today it includes more than 160 works between fresco and acrylic paintings on the walls of homes and sculptures an installations placed in the town squares by artists of different nationalities. Annually there is a laboratory for perfecting the fresco technique intended for students of the fine arts Academies that is done outdoors. Due to its open air …

P.A. Civic Museum Garda

The antique monastery of Santa Chiara, located in Piazza Ottinetti, in the heart of Ivrea, after years of closing and important restoration work, today it houses the museum, fruit of the city archeological collection and donations of private individuals, which with a renewed set-up, gives back to the city the precious collections of archeology, Oriental art and paintings.

Characterised by periodic rotations of collections, temporary exhibits, publications and …