There is a painter who took his name from this town: Guglielmo Caccia, known to everyone as "il Moncalvo", who opened his workshop here and taught his daughters to paint at a time when art was forbidden to women almost everywhere. Moncalvo is one of the smallest villages in Italy, set on a hill in the Monferrato surrounded by vineyards, yet its streets hold stories you would not expect: the castle of the Marquises of Monferrato, a synagogue and an old ghetto, the Stolpersteine (stumbling stones), a theatre that was first a church and then a cinema, and the sferisterio, where people still play pallone col pugno (fist ball). Choose the route that suits you, whether short, complete, themed or for the little ones, and set off from Piazza Garibaldi, the highest point in the town.
Available itineraries
The Historic Centre of Moncalvo, Short Route
An itinerary that in a short time will show you how much history is hidden in this village of the Monferrato. You will start from Piazza Garibaldi, in front of a building that was a church, then a theatre and then a cinema, and from there you will reach the castle of the Marquises, the synagogue and the Jewish ghetto, the town hall that grew out of a convent, and the church of San Francesco. There are twelve stops that gather the essentials of the historic centre, one after another, with no detours.
The Historic Centre of Moncalvo, In-Depth Route
Moncalvo is one of the smallest villages in Italy, but in two hours you will discover how many lives it holds. Nineteen stops take you from the castle of the Marquises of Monferrato to the sferisterio of the "Fossa dei Leoni", from the synagogue and the old ghetto to the stumbling stones, as far as the convent of Sant'Orsola, now the town hall, and the church of San Francesco.
Moncalvo - Itinerary for Children
Look up: on the cornice in Piazza Garibaldi a swallow is waiting for you, and she will be your guide. Her family has nested on the rooftops of Moncalvo for countless generations, and from up there she has seen everything: a theatre that was once a church and then became a cinema, the castle of the marquises, a field where people play ball by hitting it with their fist.
In the Footsteps of Guglielmo and Orsola Caccia
In 1593 a painter bought a house in this village and took its name: since then Guglielmo Caccia has been known to everyone as "il Moncalvo". In six stops, follow him and his daughter Orsola Maddalena, a nun and painter, from the house-workshop that became a convent and then a town hall to the church of San Francesco, where their hands meet on the same canvases. It is the story of a father and a daughter who kept painting together even after his death: listen to it in the places where it was born.
