| Ostana | ||
 | ||
| State | Italy | |
|---|---|---|
| Region | Piedmont | |
| Territory | Valleys of Cuneo | |
| Altitude | 1,250 m a.s.l. | |
| Surface | 14.09 km² | |
| Inhabitants | 74 (2010 census) | |
| Name inhabitants | Ostanesi | |
| Prefix tel | 39 0175 | |
| POSTAL CODE | 12030 | |
| Time zone | UTC 1 | |
| Patron | San Claudio | |
Position
| ||
| Institutional website | ||
Ostana is an alpine center of the Piedmont.
To know
The small town is one of the most beautiful villages in Italy; it is also one of the municipalities with fewer inhabitants: 74, divided between the 9 hamlets of the municipality. It is spoken there Occitan language.
Geographical notes
Located inUpper Po Valley, has Monviso as its backdrop. It is 36 km from Saluzzo, 43 from Pinerolo, 68 from Wedge.
Background
Findings of prehistoric civilizations, rock carvings, burial necropolis have been found in this part of the Po valley, testifying to the ancient frequentation by man. Ligurian populations inhabited the area before the advent of the Romans, when it was part of the Alpes Cottie with the capital Susa. When the Roman Empire fell, the Lombards arrived; invasions by Saracens must then be recorded, who settled in Crissolo to exploit the silver lead mines, until their expulsion in 972.
With the rise of the Lords, the Po valley entered the area of influence of Saluzzo and its marquisate. Ostana is mentioned for the first time in a document dated 1322 when it was given to the marquises of the Carretto, until in 1329 the feudal power of the del Carretto was revoked. Entered in the possessions of Saluzzo, in 1425 Ostana had its own Statutes. Also in Ostana the Waldensian religion spread, which brought about fights and persecutions, up to the elimination of the Waldensians in the valley in the first half of the seventeenth century.
The Marquisate of Saluzzo, annexed to France in the mid-sixteenth century, passed to the Savoy in 1601 with the Treaty of Lyon; Ostana and the upper Po valley followed its fate. The twentieth century brought the depopulation of the mountain and of the town of Ostana, which was reduced to a few dozen inhabitants. Now it seems that the country can find some development with tourism.
How to orient yourself
Ostana: full screen map.Neighborhoods
The towns of Ciampagna, Ciampetti, Sant'Antonio, La Villa, San Bernardo, Bernardi, Serre, Miridò and Martino are inhabited areas of the municipal area.
How to get
By car
- Toll booth Marene on the A6 motorway Turin - Savona; continue on SS 662 up to Savigliano, then Saluzzo; continue for Revello, Sanfront, Paesana, Ostana.
- Toll booth of Pinerolo on the A55 Torino - Pinerolo motorway; continue for Bricherasio, Bagnolo Piemonte, Barge, Paesana, Ostana.
- It can be reached with the Provincial Road 26 Saluzzo - Revello
On the train
- From Turin Porta Nuova to Saluzzo with change at Savigliano; then coach to Paesana and Ostana.
By bus
Connections for Paesana and Saluzzo.
How to get around
- On foot, trekking on the paths and on the mule tracks up to the mountain pastures, after passing through the various villages of the municipal area.
What see
Ostana, already a small town in itself, is made up of even smaller scattered villages. Its strength is its position, on the sunny side of its mountain in the Po Valley from which you can enjoy a beautiful view of the Monviso. The Po, the great river that crosses the whole Po Valley that it created with its tributaries, was born here and touches, still an infant, the territory of Ostana. To appreciate the town and its nature you have to walk through its ancient villages, the cobbled streets, the dry stone walls of the houses, the small votive chapels. Once the town counted, in the Thirties, up to 1,187 inhabitants; then the abandonment of the mountain almost produced desertification, leaving only a few dozen people scattered in the villages to live in these luighi: La Villo (in Occitan, La Villa in Italian), Champanho (Ciampagna), Marquét (Marchetti), La Ruà (Bernardi), Miribrart (Sant'Antonio). Sant'Antonio - Miribrart is perhaps the most characteristic nucleus, with its houses all leaning against each other that preserve the large stone that bears the date of construction engraved.
Returning to the capital, we still meet San Bernardo, which preserves a small church where a valuable medieval fresco, and then Samicoulàou (San Nicolao). Going up the panorama becomes truly spectacular; at Punta Sellassa (2036 m) the view embraces the entire Alpine chain with the Monviso, the Rosa, the Matterhorn.
Events and parties
- Ostana Award - Writings in the mother tongue. Literary prize whose purpose is to safeguard the Occitan linguistic heritage.
- Exhibition of Occitan cinema. It takes place every year, for seven years now, during the summer period and is located in the various centers of the Occitan language; the aim is always to save the identity of a people through the timely revival of the language.
What to do
Shopping
- The toma d'alpeggio, a cheese produced by some herdsmen, is recommended.
- Artisan laboratory for the production of mountain liqueurs (Borgata Miridò), ☎ 39 333 7707471.
How to have fun
Where to eat
Typical dish is potato and buckwheat polenta, served in slices and accompanied by cheese, aioli, banho dë coussor (pumpkin sauce) and with the typical banho dal jòous, the “Thursday sauce”, prepared with the residual dairy product from the preparation of butter.
Where stay
Average prices
All the following places also carry out catering services.
- Galaberna Refuge, Location Villa 18 a (in the capital La Villa), ☎ 39 0175 940310, @[email protected].
- Bed & Breakfast 44, Via Roma, 44 (location Villa), ☎ 39 347 2461812.
- To our mizoun (A cà nòsta), Durandin Locality 39, ☎ 39 339 7616431, @[email protected]. Farmhouse
- Monviso residence (Location Villa), ☎ 39 333 1293277, @[email protected].
- Baita Miridò, Borgata Miridò, ☎ 39 333 7707471.
- Lou Batënt residence (Ruà hamlet), ☎ 39 335 6761014.
Safety
How to keep in touch
Post office
- Italian post, Via Roma 52, ☎ 39 0175 94909.
