Rivara
Encyclopedia
Rivara is a comune
(municipality) in the Province of Turin
in the Canavese area of the Italian
region of Piedmont
, located about 40 km north of Turin
. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,597 and an area of 12.4 km².
Rivara borders the following municipalities: Pratiglione
, Valperga
, Prascorsano
, Forno Canavese
, Pertusio
, San Ponso
, Busano
, Levone
, and Barbania
.
salubrior hisce montibus aer. The reference to the salubrious mountain air is due to the village hilly location.
Rivara is a very old village and the first document to make reference to it is a patent signed by the emperor Henry in 1014.
The village has two castles, the Old Castle and the New Castle. The Old Castle goes back to medieval times, and it belonged to the Counts of Valperga. It appears very well preserved from the outside, and there are still two towers, one of which is quite tall, crenellated, and has some brick Gothic windows.
The New Castle underwent a lot of refurbishment work over the centuries until 1796, when the House of the Counts of Valperga-Rivara became extinct.The new wing that was added in 1835 gave the building an entirely new look, as it transformed it into a rectangular building with a centrally positioned tower. The castle acquired its final look when the famous architect D'Andrade modified its façade.
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
(municipality) in the Province of Turin
Province of Turin
The Province of Turin is a province in the Piedmont region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Turin.It has an area of 6,830 km², and a total population of 2,277,686 . There are 315 comuni in the province – the most of any province in Italy...
in the Canavese area of the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
region of Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
, located about 40 km north of Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,597 and an area of 12.4 km².
Rivara borders the following municipalities: Pratiglione
Pratiglione
Pratiglione is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 45 km north of Turin. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 598 and an area of 8.0 km²....
, Valperga
Valperga
Valperga is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 35 km north of Turin, in the Canavese historical region....
, Prascorsano
Prascorsano
Prascorsano is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 35 km north of Turin. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 801 and an area of 6.3 km²....
, Forno Canavese
Forno Canavese
Forno Canavese is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 35 km northwest of Turin. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 3,743 and an area of 16.7 km²....
, Pertusio
Pertusio
Pertusio is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 30 km north of Turin. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 736 and an area of 4.0 km²....
, San Ponso
San Ponso
San Ponso is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 30 km north of Turin. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 278 and an area of 2.2 km²....
, Busano
Busano
Busano is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 30 km north of Turin. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,442 and an area of 5.0 km²....
, Levone
Levone
Levone is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 30 km northwest of Turin. The first recorded document to mention Levone dates back to 1197...
, and Barbania
Barbania
Barbania is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 25 km north of Turin. It is in the middle of Malone river plain....
.
History
The coat of arms of Rivara shows eleven hills and a comet accompanied by the Latin mottosalubrior hisce montibus aer. The reference to the salubrious mountain air is due to the village hilly location.
Rivara is a very old village and the first document to make reference to it is a patent signed by the emperor Henry in 1014.
The village has two castles, the Old Castle and the New Castle. The Old Castle goes back to medieval times, and it belonged to the Counts of Valperga. It appears very well preserved from the outside, and there are still two towers, one of which is quite tall, crenellated, and has some brick Gothic windows.
The New Castle underwent a lot of refurbishment work over the centuries until 1796, when the House of the Counts of Valperga-Rivara became extinct.The new wing that was added in 1835 gave the building an entirely new look, as it transformed it into a rectangular building with a centrally positioned tower. The castle acquired its final look when the famous architect D'Andrade modified its façade.