Italy Guide
Piemonte and Valle d'Aosta
Saluzzo
A flourishing medieval town, and later the seat of one of Piemonte's few Renaissance courts, SALUZZO, 57km south of Turin, retains much of its period appeal. Flaking ochre-washed terraces and Renaissance houses line cobbled streets that climb up to a castle, from where you can enjoy views of the town. A pleasant place to stay, the town has the added attraction of regular bus services into the Po, Varaita and Maira valleys, which cut through the foothills of the Monviso mountain towards France.
Just below the castle, the Torre Civica (March– Sept Thurs– Sun 9.30am–12.30pm & 2.30–6.30pm; Oct– Feb Sat & Sun same hours as above; €1.30) gives more great views over the town and surrounding areas. On the other side of the road, the Gothic church of San Giovanni has a number of thirteenth- and fourteenth-century frescoes and the tomb of the leading light of Renaissance Saluzzo, Marchese Ludovico II, anachronistically depicted as a medieval knight beneath a fancily carved canopy.
Close by, the Gothic Casa Cavassa, Via San Giovanni 5, is a fifteenth-century palace with an arcaded courtyard that doubled as a home for one of Ludovico's ministers and now houses the town's Museo Civico (April– Sept Tues & Wed guided tours only, at 11am & 4pm, Thurs– Sun unaccompanied visits 10am–1pm & 2–6pm; Oct– March Tues & Wed guided tours only, at 11am & 3pm, Thurs– Sun unaccompanied visits 10am–1pm & 2–5pm; €4, combined ticket with Torre Civica €5). Inside are period furniture and paintings, including the gorgeously gilded Madonna della Misericordia, with the Madonna sheltering Ludovico, his wife and the population of Saluzzo in the folds of her cloak.