| Calvatone | ||
 | ||
| State | Italy | |
|---|---|---|
| Region | Lombardy | |
| Territory | Oglio Po | |
| Altitude | 29 m a.s.l. | |
| Surface | 13.70 km² | |
| Inhabitants | 1.208 (2016) | |
| Name inhabitants | Calvatonesi | |
| Prefix tel | 39 0375 | |
| POSTAL CODE | 26030 | |
| Time zone | UTC 1 | |
| Patron | San Biagio (February 3) | |
Position
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| Tourism site | ||
| Institutional website | ||
Calvatone is a center of the Lombardy.
To know
Agricultural center of the Lombard plain, it boasts important archaeological remains.
Geographical notes
In the fertile Po valley, Calvatone is part of the interprovincial area Oglio Po Casalasco Viadanese. It is an agricultural center with some handicraft activities. It boasts an important protected natural area, which includes a WWF Oasis (Le Bine Nature Reserve), and a remarkable archaeological area, which involves the ancient Roman city of Bedriacum, much cited by the Roman historian Tacitus because it was the scene of two famous battles in 69 AD during the internal struggles for the ascent to the imperial throne. Casalmaggiore; 27 kilometers from Cremona; 35 kilometers from Mantua.
Background
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Already interested in prehistoric settlements, Calvatone experienced its period of greatest flourishing in Roman times. Calvatone is in fact the center that has its origins in the ancient Roman city of Bedriacum, an important commercial center located on the via Postumia, which connected Genoa to Aquileia. Numerous archaeological excavations, which began at the end of the 1950s, have brought to light important Roman finds, the best known of which are certainly the Winged Victory and the Labyrinth, respectively a statue of the goddess of victory and a mosaic floor of a Roman house. The position of Bedriacum on the Postumia, next to the important waterway constituted by the Oglio, favored its commercial development, which made it flourishing for a few centuries.
Remembered by Tacitus for the two important battles that took place in 69 d. C. between the troops of Otone and those of Vitellius during the struggles for the ascent to the imperial throne, the city began its phase of decline starting from the fifth century with the barbarian invasions. The population took refuge in a safer place, sheltered from the marshes, near the ancient camp of Othon (the castrum Othonis) to which the name of Calvatone would be linked, which some also derive from cavea Othonis, the pit (the defeat, the end) of Otho.
Under the reign of the Lombards, part of the Calvatone area was donated to the monastery of San Salvatore, later the monastery of Santa Giulia di Brescia.
In the twelfth century Calvatone had four churches (Santa Giulia, Santa Maria, San Biagio and San Bernardino, which was located in the courtyard of the contemporary church and was the parish church from the 1500s up to the erection of the current one) and a castle. In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries it was the scene of armed clashes between the troops of Cremona, Brescia and Mantua for the control of Oglio; the existence of three castles dates back to these years: the Castle, the Castelletto and the Castellazzo, modest fortifications on an embankment, which were later demolished.
At the end of 1590 Calvatone had the pastoral visit of Pope Gregory IV.
Finally, the Austrian domination came, the town was given as a fief to the Spanish commander Gian Battista Castaldi, remembered with the title in his name of an alley of the current town. The deviation of the Oglio course dates back to 1790, an intervention that led to the birth of the Bine area, which thus found themselves on the right bank of the river. After the Napoleonic interlude, Calvatone followed the fate of Lombardy and landed in unified Italy.
How to orient yourself
Calvatone: full screen map.How to get
By plane
- Airport Giuseppe Verdi of Parma
- Airport Valerio Catullo of Verona
- Airport Gabriele D'Annunzio of Montichiari (BS)
- Airport Caravaggio of Orio al Serio (BG)
By car
Tollbooth closest to Mantua on the Brenner motorway
It is next to the former state road 10 Mantua - Cremona
Tollbooth closest to Mantua on the Brenner motorway
It is next to the former state road 10 On the train
Station a Piadena:
By bus
Coach line Casalmaggiore - Buttonhole
Coach line How to get around
What see
- Archaeological excavations of Bedriacum. The archaeological area is not far from the modern town. The excavations [1] they are recently conducted every year by the University of Milan. The site has yielded two important finds in the past; the statue of the Winged Victory and the floor depicting a Labyrinth.
- The Winged Victory, one of the most important pieces of Roman art of the genre in upper Italy, dated to the second century AD, depicts a female figure on a globe with a dedication to the Emperors Lucio Vero and Marcus Aurelius. The original, restored in Berlin and then disappeared after the war, seems to be exhibited at the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, perhaps arrived there as spoils of war. Some say instead that it is a copy, like the one kept at the Museum of Piadena[2].
- There Domus of the Labyrinth it was a house of considerable size, developed between the first century BC and the first century after Christ. The floors of this domus were made with mixtures of marble chips and lithic tesserae. The floor with the representation of the Labyrinth was removed in 1959 and is now preserved in the Museum of Piadena[3].
- The excavation campaigns, conducted annually by the University of Milan, allow to deepen the knowledge of this Roman center which has linked its name to two important battles in the year 69 AD. between Otone and Vitellius during the struggles for the conquest of the imperial office.
- Visits to the archaeological area
- The Visitors Center at the Town Hall of Calvatone (via Umberto I, 112) will be open to the public every Wednesday morning from 10 to 12 by Dr. Nadia Agosti.
- At the center, it will be possible to visit the permanent photographic exhibition "Polichne. Bedriacum, a small town in the Roman Cisalpina. The rediscovery of the origins of Calvatone" and attend the projection of the virtual reconstruction (3D) of the Domus del Labirinto.
- For visits on other dates and times, contact Dr. AGOSTI at the following email address: [email protected].
- Visit to the excavation site
- Every year, usually in the month of May, an excavation campaign is held by the team of the University of Milan in Bedriacum. The excavation site is open to the public on days and times that are announced for the occasion.
- Upon request, to be sent by e-mail, to the Visitors Center of the Municipality of Calvatone (Dr. Nadia AGOSTI: [email protected]), it is possible to organize, even on other dates and times, visits for groups of at least 15 people.
From an environmental point of view, Calvatone offers:
- 1 Le Bine Nature Reserve - WWF Oasis. It is a protected area and a regional nature reserve established by the Lombardy Region in 1987, included in the Oglio Sud Natural Park. Since 1974 it has been a WWF Italy Oasis.
- It affects an area of about 96 hectares, of which 20 are natural reserve and the remaining area of respect.
- The area occupied by the Le Bine Nature Reserve was born at the end of the eighteenth century following the straightening of the river Oglio, which led to the abandonment of a large meander, and its progressive swamping. The name derives from the characteristic farmhouse which in Lombard is called "bina" that is "shelter, pile dwelling and closed".
- The branch of the abandoned river is fed by some underground springs, and is in any case in direct connection with the main course of the river. All around are productive areas, with agricultural and arboreal crops.
- The most important part from a naturalistic point of view is obviously the marshy one, which extends in the shape of a horseshoe and consists of a vast reed bed crossed by a canal that widens in some points to form wide open spaces, very frequented by birds. aquatic. The Bine Reserve is very rich in animal species, starting with invertebrates: molluscs, insects, crustaceans and showy dragonflies.
- River fish fauna includes pike, carp, tench, bleak, loach, catfish and sun perch. There are numerous and important species of reptiles and amphibians: in particular, it should be remembered the presence of the Lataste frog, an exclusive species of the Po Valley and a few other places (in Casalasco it is also present in the protected floodplain areas of Motta Baluffi is Torricella del Pizzo), symbol of the reserve. For the poultry fauna we should mention: ducks, waders, herons, birds of prey, passerines, which can be easily admired in the area. Finally the mammals, among which interesting species such as the small mustiolo and the badger stand out.
- The oasis is equipped with a nature trail, a visitor center and a farmhouse.
- South Oglio Park - It extends from the border with the Oglio Nord Park and affects the Oglio River in the final stretch, up to the confluence with the Po. The Park headquarters are in Calvatone in Piazza Donatore del Sangue, 2. The Oglio Sud Park is made up of the fluvial areas of the territories of Acquanegra sul Chiese Canneto sull'Oglio Casalromano Marcaria Ostiano · I want to on the left bank; Cocoon Calvatone Commessage · Halyard · Gazzuolo · Dovarese Island · Pessina Cremonese · Piadena · San Martino dall'Argine · Viadana on the right bank.
Events and parties
- Festival of San Biagio.
February 3. - Spring Fair. last weekend of March.
- Autumn Festival. first Sunday in October.
February 3.What to do
Shopping
- 1 Market, Blood Donor Square. Monday morning.
How to have fun
Where to eat
Average prices
- 1 Ristorante Pizzeria Magna Magna, Blood Donors square 13 (in town), ☎ 39 0375 97566.
- 2 Le Bine farmhouse, Strada Bine 1424 (inside the WWF Oasis Le Bine), ☎ 39 3483850901.
- 3 At the Attic, via Umberto I, 6 (in town), ☎ 39 0375 97086, fax: 39 0375 97086.
- 4 Bar Pizzeria La Cuccia and the Nest, former state road n. 10 Padana Inferiore km 256 185, ☎ 39 331 4469125.
Where stay
- 1 Le Bine farmhouse, Strada Bine 1424 (inside the WWF Oasis Le Bine), ☎ 39 3483850901.
- 2 At the Attic, via Umberto I, 6 (in town), ☎ 39 0375 97086, fax: 39 0375 97086.
Safety
Pharmacies
- 1 Santa Rita, Via Umberto I, 1, ☎ 39 0375 97039.
How to keep in touch
Post office
- 2 Italian post, via Umberto I, 1, ☎ 39 0375 97571.
Keep informed
- Oglio Po news. Computer newspaper of Oglio Po.
- [link not working]The Envoy. Online newspaper of the province - Casalmaggiore Chronicle.
- The province, Via Pozzi, 15, ☎ 39 0375 200493, fax: 39 0375 201466. Daily newspaper - Casalmaggiore editorial staff.
Around
- Acquanegra sul Chiese - The Abbey of San Tommaso Apostolo preserves, in a majestic interior, important remains of Romanesque frescoes from the early 12th century. It once belonged to the now lost Benedictine convent.
- Cocoon - Gonzaga city, it was the capital of a duchy of a collateral branch of the Gonzaga. Vespasiano worked there urban planning before putting his hand to his masterpiece: Sabbioneta; with Giulio Cesare and Scipione he defines his own elegant urban appearance that responds to sixteenth-century ideals. Of the ancient walls, however, only a short stretch, severely damaged by collapses and neglect, remains.
- Sabbioneta - City of foundation, UNESCO World Heritage Site, maintains the walls within which the magic of ideal urban planning by Vespasiano Gonzaga has remained intact; the Teatro all'Antica, the Ducal Palace, the Gallery, the Incoronata church are some of its monuments that stand out in a context that has been admirably preserved.
- Mantua - Capital of the Gonzagas, it still exudes its subtle charm of a great city of art for which it appoints it a UNESCO World Heritage Site it was not so much a recognition as a necessary acknowledgment. Its ancient atmospheres are incomparable, the profiles of the palaces and domes that stand out in the Po Valley mist enveloped by the mirror of its lakes, its endless Gonzaga palace that incorporates numerous buildings in the city center.
- Casalmaggiore - Capital of Casalasco, protected by mighty embankments, the city develops parallel to the bed of the Po. The wide breath of the main square, the undeniable majesty of the Town Hall and the Cathedral reveal its character as an important center of the Bassa. The Sanctuary of the Madonna della Fontana, the church of Santa Chiara, the church of the Hospital are among its outstanding monuments.
Itineraries
- In the lands of the Gonzagas - An itinerary through the centers, large and small, which were the capitals of the Gonzaga cadet branches: principalities, marquisates, duchies which, within the Mantuan state structure, enjoyed real independence, often minted coins and held refined courts that rivaled that of Mantua, embellished their urban centers by equipping them with elegant architecture - churches, squares, palaces, walls, towers - and characteristic urban views such as the typical Gonzaga arcades.
