: Crafts of Piemonte
Regions of Italy
: Crafts of Piemonte
The sole mountain community in the province of Asti is “Langa Astigiana Val Bormida”, which includes 16 villages of Piedmont, on the border with region Liguria. The landscape is now hilly, with vineyards and meadows, now mountainous and wooded: resulting in a fascinating and animated scenery, with sharp and steep cliffs. Such lands, before the Romanic colonization, saw through centuries barbarian raids and incursions, as well as numerous settlements by Gauls and Celtics, as it is still testified by many impressive towers [Read more...]
The sole mountain community in the province of Asti is “Langa Astigiana Val Bormida”, which includes 16 villages of Piedmont, on the border with region Liguria. The landscape is now hilly, with vineyards and meadows, now mountainous and wooded: resulting in a fascinating and animated scenery, with sharp and steep cliffs.
Such lands, before the Romanic colonization, saw through centuries barbarian raids and incursions, as well as numerous settlements by Gauls and Celtics, as it is still testified by many impressive towers and fortresses, intact or in ruins.
Rural population in the area is busy with three main manufactures: stone, wood and dairy products.
The “Stone of Langa” derives from sandstone, and is good for building utilization. It is not mined in caves, but it comes from agricultural activity and from demolition of old facilities: malleable, manageable, pleasant for its appearance, it is used – mainly dry-stone – for building hardy hamlets and embankments.
Moreover, since countless generations local artisans have been improving the manufacture of valuable woods: walnut, oak, cherry tree, beech, chestnut. The material is carved, engraved, shaped, often combining antique and modern techniques: and here you are stylish chairs, tables, “vecchio Piemonte” style wardrobes and many other pieces of furniture.
As for dairy production, among the 9 DPO Piedmont cheeses of cow, caprine and ovine origins, stands out – uncontested as for quality and taste – the valuable ‘Robiola di Roccaverano’, which is much appreciated abroad as well, produced here by some sixty firms.
