MASSA-CARRRA – “There is a magical ring that surrounds Carrara. A route made up of paths and dirt roads”: this is how the Cammino di Aronte is described, which surrounds the city between villages and woods. From today, to underline and tell the history of our territory, a signage is placed to indicate the 5 stages of the Camino born, successfully, three years ago. For now there are therefore 5 panels, the largest in size compared to the others which will be placed at a later time, which will mark the 5 main stages of the route (from Fossone to Santa Lucia, from Santa Lucia to Torretta Padula, from Torretta Padula to Colonnata, from Colonnata to Carrara, from Carrara to Fossone) designed and created by two landscape architects Gianna Bianchi and Virginia Neri, commissioned by the Cassa di Risparmio di Carrara Foundation. A project, as explained by the president of the CrC Foundation, Enrico Isoppi, which opens up scenarios aimed at increasingly and better valorising the territory and this path, which is an integral part of it and which immediately demonstrated great attractiveness. Another 10 panels, smaller but with the same iconographic characteristics, namely the profile of Monte Sagro surmounted by the Little Mermaid, two of the elements of our landscape and our legends, will be positioned in the historic centers of the villages touched by the Camino di Aronte, and others, in the direction, around twenty and even a little smaller, will be placed along the route.
“The graphic project is impactful – highlights Isoppi – the signs have the Siren logo at the top, the profile of Monte Sagro at the bottom which supports the entire scaffolding of the route: these are key elements within the legend of the haruspex Etruscan Aronte and his love for the Siren who abandoned the sea to live with her beloved among our mountains, deeply linked to Carrara and its history. Furthermore, Monte Sagro represents in itself a physical symbol of Carrara in the collective imagination of the area. This is a new phase of growth of the project, which will be followed by the second which involves the execution of signs in the historic centers of the towns involved in the route, which will be designed and implemented little by little. For this phase, the support and collaboration with the various Proloco will be fundamental”.
Isoppi then recalled the precious support of the North West Tuscany Chamber of Commerce and the two associations Anfass and Panathlon Carrara and Massa, together with the CAI of Carrara, which supported by the Carrara Municipality made the project possible. In fact, the Foundation, through its operational arm, Progetto srl led by the director Emanuela Mazzi and the president Roberto Dell’Amico, has stipulated a sponsorship contract with the Municipality, taking on the task of implementing and financing the entire project. The billboards, the architects explain, ‘connect’ and strengthen the ring that goes from the mountains to the sea, becoming in turn an element of reading and knowledge of the places, capable of enhancing their identity. In fact, they contain historical, artistic and cultural information, rendered through physical media, so as to improve the tourist experience and communicate what is truly a unique local identity. The creation, the architects further explain, is capable of enhancing the experience from an experiential point of view in the small details that integrate with the nature and landscape that characterize the Cammino di Aronte: the stylized logo of the Mermaid that stands out on every sign is not in fact imprinted but engraved on the frame, so that we can see it and at the same time look beyond it to admire what is behind: the sky, a stone wall, the leaves of a tree, a particular panorama which thus becomes part of the legend. The metal frames, then, contain the history and identity of the place as well as the stage, through the symbols and graphics engraved on sheet metal. The panels are also equipped with QR Codes capable of providing all information even better and in detail.
A project that opens up to broad scenarios, the Councilor for Tourism Lara Benfatto herself, present at the conference at Palazzo Binelli together with the Councilor for Public Works Elena Guadagni, expresses optimism. “Thank you for your collaboration – Lara Benfatto spoke – these are projects aimed at enhancing the territory. The Aronte Path is more than a Path but a journey through history and legends, which through our villages and nature allows you to experience the territory and our gastronomic culture. The administration is trying to promote slow tourism in our area also with fairs and we will soon publish a calendar of events set in nature. In the fairs we went to – the councilor reported – we noticed a lot of interest in experiential tourism, done first hand and many showed curiosity and attention towards the seaside aspect, but also towards the paths, the marble workshops and Fossacava ”. Good news also in relations with nearby Massa. The tourism councilor of the Persiani administration, Giorgi Garau, also attending the conference, reiterated the unitary vision of the territory, so much so that he looks with enthusiasm at a project still in the pipeline with the Foundation and which is just waiting to be developed: uniting the Path of Aronte with the Path of the Sources. Regarding this last route, it is the president of the CAI of Massa Fabrizio Bertoneri who informs us: “We have recovered all the paths above Massa, the paths of the Terre del Frigido of which the Fonti path that connects Massa to Montignoso is part. . Recently under Antona, among the mills, we even recovered a majesty from the 1500s”. Having presented the project, the authorities had no choice but to reach Piazza XXVII Aprile and inaugurate the first panel, the one from which travelers will be able to set off on the Cammino di Aronte, choosing to complete it by going down towards the valley and then going back up or by going up towards the mountain and then DESCEND.
Tags: legends area Camino Aronte iconographic panels arrive
