The special natural reserve
The special natural reserve - Environment and protected area
Surface: 22 hectares
Altitude: 455 - 650 meters above sea level
Environment: pre-Alps
Year of establishment as a Special Nature Reserve of the Piedmont Region: 1980
The variety of areas shows the particular history of this place. The oldest chapels reminds of the religious experience of the Franciscans dating back to the time of Saint Francis or a little later, with their little churches and small convents built very simply, nestled in the enveloping vegetation to encourage meditation and prayer just like the groups from Nazareth and Bethlehem placed in the beech forest known as “Vallone dell’Inferno". Continuing along the route, the scenery changes, between the cobbled roads and boxwood hedges, pruned with particular shapes, it is possible to spot chapels featuring a more refined late Renaissance architecture. A little further down, there are the two squares: the civil one - known as "dei Tribunali", with the palaces where Jesus was submitted to the judgment of the High Priests and the Roman Governor: the Palace of Caiaphas, the Palace of Pilate, Herod and Anne - and the religious one, where the church stands.
The area is rich in native and exotic plants planted arranged according to the style of the Italian Renaissance gardens with the aim of highlighting the architectural complex. It is worth mentioning a beech wood shaped as an organ pipe as well as a few century-old tree species such as boxwood, badger, ilex and field elm.
Despite the fact that the territory of the Reserve has been deeply changed by human interventions, the extension of the forest slowly increased and the flower vegetation was enriched, so much so that 421 species of flowers were identified.