Cascina Rosengana

Cascina Rosengana

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Area Collina

The Territory

From Piazza Cavour, which even today the Cocconatesi call Ponte, in memory of the place where the drawbridge of the castle of the counts Radicati once stood, you go up to the upper part of the town along Via Roma, once called the contrada of the old market and Via Maestra. Ancient houses with balconies with wrought iron railings and carved wooden doors overlook the pavement, made of Balma syenite.

At the entrance of the street there is the seventeenth-century church of SS. Trinità, erected by the homonymous congregation for the vote of the population against the plague. Among the shops that follow along the way, it is worth visiting the eighteenth-century pharmacy, which preserves the original furniture, antique decorated vases and tools. . Continuing on the right you can see the imposing shape of the Town Hall with its fifteenth-century arcades all pointed. It is one of the rare examples, for Piedmont, of civil buildings in Gothic style, with elegant windows surrounded by tiles decorated in terracotta.

After passing the town hall and abandoned via Roma, which continues uphill with a cobbled path towards the parish church, turn left reaching Piazza Statuto. This square represented the heart of the Cocconato of the early decades of the twentieth century with shops, craft shops, cafes and a bank. Today it is dominated by Palazzo Martelletti, skillfully restored to its former glory by the current owners, the Dezzani family.

Continuing along Via Garibaldi you can see two main social structures that arose at the end of the nineteenth century: the Serra Hospital, where until the fifties the operating room was in operation, and which today is a retirement home, and the Garden of childhood Regina Margherita, current home of the state nursery school.

At the junction with Via Giustinito you can go down in Corso Pinin Giachino and reach the shady tree-lined avenue: built at the end of the nineteenth century, with an impressive work of land recovery and consolidation, is the place for walks and rest, in the shade of ancient elms. At the center of the avenue is the monument to the Fallen, donated by the pharmacist Edoardo Barcolla in 1931. The original bronze statue depicting the Winged Victory was removed during World War II to recover the metal, and replaced by a marble column. From the avenue we return to Piazza Cavour, which overlooks renowned food shops, cafes and restaurants with a long tradition.



The Palio

The Palio di Cocconato was born in 1970 as a challenge between the villages of the town and on the wings of old legends related to the medieval history of the place, when the Rooted Counts played a role of great importance between the contests of the Marquises of Monferrato, Asti and the Savoy. In fact, the chronicles of the time tell that a fire broke out in the castle; to extinguish the flames the Cocconatesi began a generous column towards the valley where the stream flowed and, loading barrels of water on the bastions of the donkeys helped to save the stronghold. The Rooted Counts then held a tournament at the center of which there was a donkey race, with the banner of the House.
With the passing of time, the event took on a character of decisive historical re-enactment. Currently the eight villages Cocconatesi provide every year to set up their historical parade and to prepare the team of runners with the donkey that will defend the colors. The Palio takes place on the fourth Sunday of September, the historical re-enactment is based exclusively on facts and characters that occurred and lived in Cocconato around the years 1200 to 1400.
The costumes and details must be strictly in time and you can not expect parades that are outside the years mentioned. But everything begins the night before with the investiture of the Captain of the Palio, which from that moment becomes the only referee among the villages. The investiture of the Captain takes place on the "public square", the Mayor gives full power to the Captain for 24 hours becomes the Lord and Master of the lands and people of Cocconato. Among medieval characters, nobles, minstrels, ladies, courtiers, musicians and acrobats who rejoice for the new Captain, parades towards the central and characteristic Town Hall Courtyard, illuminated only by the fire of torches and candles, to celebrate, enjoying, all together the characteristic "Banchetto de vivande de la Corte". In the splendid setting of the courtyard of the Town Hall is set up a real banquet where dishes are prepared and served that faithfully reflect a typical menu of the Middle Ages.
To crown the event is held in Cocconato a preview: the week before that of the Palio (Saturday) from 18. 00 and until dawn takes place along the central Via Roma, A REINTERPRETATION OF AN ANCIENT MEDIEVAL FAIR. In the truly unique setting of the ancient and central Via Roma, the villages set up stalls, inns, scenes of life of the time, markets, games, artisans of iron and wood, all between straw, candles, torches, minstrels, plague asking for alms, cartomanti, games of swords and music faithfully respecting the rules and the cadences of a fair of the past. You can stop in the inns and enjoy the typical dishes made from ancient medieval recipes, watered by good local wine, all strictly served in plates and glasses of earthenware, wooden cutlery nothing that can bring back the mind to today, for one evening we return in the year 1200 with all its characteristics and difficulties.