Holiday apartment in Massa-Carrara: marble, castles and Lunigiana culture

Massa-Carrara combines impressive marble quarries with castles, museums, historical festivals and traces of Lunigiana. In Carrara, the insights range from Roman archaeology to modern marble sculpting techniques, while Pontremoli, Fosdinovo and Aulla each have their own particular focus. In addition, there are gorges, river landscapes and paths through largely untouched nature.

The various places preserve very different chapters of history: theatre history in Fivizzano, the prehistory of Lunigiana in the Castello del Piagnaro, the history of the Resistance in Fosdinovo and the Via Francigena in San Caprasio. This creates a diverse picture made up of landscape, culture and inherited traditions.

Culture

In Fivizzano, the Museo della Stampa is located in the Palazzo Fantoni Bononi. Also in Fivizzano, the Teatro degli Imperfetti opened in 1807; it has 600 seats. In Aulla, the Museo di Storia Naturale della Lunigiana contains botanical, zoological and mineralogical collections. The museum also has a wheelchair-accessible entrance and a wheelchair-accessible parking space.

Carrara is particularly dedicated to the history of marble. Since 1805, the Castello Malaspina has housed the Accademia di Belle Arti. The Rocca of Carrara was reinforced in the 13th century by the town’s secular authorities as a military fortress. The Museo Civico del Marmo presents Roman archaeology, local history and modern marble sculpting techniques. The industrial archaeology section displays machines and tools used to extract and process marble from Roman times to the present day. The Castello Malaspina in Massa can be reached from the historic centre via a scenic road with old steps and narrow lanes.

Fosdinovo also combines historic buildings with more recent remembrance culture. The Museo audiovisivo della Resistenza presents interviews, archive images and recordings through interactive multimedia installations. It also has a photo library dedicated to the Apuan-Lunigiana Resistance. The Oratorio della Compagnia dei Bianchi has a white marble façade and a Baroque interior.

History

The Museo delle Statue Stele is located in the Castello del Piagnaro in Pontremoli. It preserves significant documentation of the prehistory of Lunigiana. The stelae displayed there date from the Copper Age to the period of Romanisation. In Fosdinovo, the original keep of the Castello Malaspina dates from the 11th century; the complex was later expanded with defensive towers and turrets. The Chiesa Parrocchiale di San Remigio is a 13th-century building. It contains the tomb of Galeotto I Malaspina.

In Aulla, the Abbazia di San Caprasio was founded within a castle in 884. Archaeological excavations there uncovered a monumental 10th-century tomb of the saint. The Museo dell’Abbazia presents life in the abbey, the history of San Caprasio and the passage of pilgrims along the Via Francigena. The Abbazia di San Caprasio is considered one of the most important Italian stations on the Via Francigena.

Nature

The distinctive landscapes include the Stretti di Giaredo, a series of gorges carved out of the rock by the Torrente Gordana. In the Carrara area, there are open-pit, shaft, hillside and tunnel quarries. They form marble landscapes cut into the mountain. Nature trails along the Magra River and its tributaries offer impressive views of the landscape amid largely untouched nature.

From Monte Pasquilio, which lies at an altitude of around 800 metres, the view extends from the Apuan-Versilian coast to the islands of the Tuscan Archipelago and, in clear weather, as far as Corsica. The upland landscape thus stands alongside the deeply cut marble quarries and the rivers of Lunigiana.

Trails

The Fosdinovo area is criss-crossed by paths suitable for trekking and mountain biking. Another historic connection is formed by the Via Marchesana. It runs from the Passo dei Due Santi, a 1,392-metre-high pass between the provinces of Parma and Massa-Carrara, via Patigno, Noce, Coloretta and La Dolce to Bosco di Rossano in the valley of the Torrente Teglia.

Equi Terme has a railway station on the Aulla–Lucca line.

Traditions

Pontremoli shapes the course of the year with recurring events. The Disfida dei Falò takes place every January as a medieval competition involving bonfires. Medievalis is a historical re-enactment held annually at the end of August, with markets, food stalls and medieval activities.

Places

Other places: Aulla, Fivizzano, Zeri, Carrara, Fosdinovo, Tresana, Licciana-Nardi, Mulazzo, Comano, Massa, Pontremoli, Montignoso, Filattiera, Casola In Lunigiana, Bagnone, Villafranca In Lunigiana, Podenzana, Colonnata, Corlaga, Malgrate, Marina di Carrara, Caniparola, Cantiere-ponticello, Arpiola-pianturcano, Pian di Molino, Gragnana, Prota.

For the higher-level travel overview: Tuscany.