Art experience.

In the far west of Liguria, the incredibly narrow Valle Argentina cuts through the land dividing the sea from the mountains, climbing from sea level to 2000 meters in a mere 30 kilometers. From Arma di Taggia, the seaside town almost on the doorstep of San Remo, and Taggia, famous for its terraced olive groves, a picturesque and winding road zigzags up the valley through a spectacular landscape dotted with tiny little villages.

One of these communities is the ancient hilltop town of Triora: a maze of narrow little streets, vaulted passageways and sculpted slate portals. A victim of World War 11 Nazi bombing, today the town has been so completely restored to all its medieval splendor that it has been granted the status of one of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy (Borghi più Belli d'Italia) and awarded the Touring Club's Orange Flag for the quality of its eco-tourism.

Triora has been known as the "Town of Witches" since 1587, when it was the theater for witch trials. A number of the women of Triora were accused of being "bagiue", or witches, and of having caused the bad weather, and consequent crop shortages which had plagued the area in that period. The trials, detailed records of which have been scrupulously conserved over the centuries, resulted in the women being subjected to the most terrible of tortures in order to obtain confessions of their involvement in black magic, nocturnal revelry, and occult meetings in secret locations.

Anybody interested in discovering more about this dark moment in the town's history should visit the Ethnographic and Witchcraft Museum, in the center of Triora. Visitors to the museum take a journey back in time, discovering the ancient agricultural traditions, the history and the prehistoric origins of the town. The rooms on the first floor focus on rural life, with material which reveals just how isolated this community once was, perhaps explaining how prone its inhabitants might have been to superstitions and archaic beliefs. The town's prisons were once located in the basement of the museum and it is here, in all likelihood, that the women accused of witchcraft were incarcerated before they were burnt at the stake. Documents relative to the trials are displayed, along with reconstructions of scenes of the interrogations and the tortures to which the women suspected of being witches were subjected.

Beyond the walls of the museum, the theme of witches and witchcraft continues, in the form of statues, witches houses, shops selling witchy souvenirs and fascinating "magical itineraries", During these tours walkers visit the Cabotina, once the poorest quarter of the town and where the majority of the women accused of witchcraft lived; the Lagodegnu, in the woods which was cited in the trial documents as one of the witches favorite meeting places; and Monte delle Forche (Gallows Mountain). It is said that at the Monte delle Forche a mandrake grew from the "seed" of the men who had been hanged there, and that this plant was used by the witches in potions which prolonged copulation. This curious web of history and legends becomes all the more intriguing as dusk falls and the sound of footsteps echoing through the vaulted stone passageways of this mysterious town can be heard.

Museo Regionale Etnografico e della Stregoneria
Corso Italia, 1
Triora (Imperia)
Opening time: from Monday to Friday 14,30 - 18; Saturday and Sunday 10,30 - 12