A 16th century inn representing the original building (Tavern plus two adjoining floors) known as ‘Palàzz’, was rebuilt in 1777 and restored as recently as 2002, becoming the Museum base.
The Museum of the Via Spluga bears splendid witness to local history, featuring documents, works of art and literature regarding the ancient route, its trade and postal history. Among the exhibits are official contracts for transport and commerce dating from the 18th century – including an impressive Daily Ledger of a Chiavenna-based forwarding agent (1752-1768), maps of the period and original printed matter including the complete series of Meyer (Zurich, 1825), Lose (Milan, 1825) and Calvaert and Cole (London 1826) portraying the Spluga and the recently-created road (1822) in historical accounts, literature (il Passo’ sublime’ Erhaben) and artworks by many illustrious travellers (Leonardo da Vinci, Erasmus of Rotterdam, Gessner, Goethe, Turner, Einstein among others).
The section dedicated to modes of transport forms part of that devoted to craftsmanship and traditional employment in the valley, among which ‘grapàtt’ (grappa producer), quarrymen, timber working, and wood and iron crafts are prominent.
Especially noteworthy is the faithful reproduction of the environment of the period using authentic materials: a complete 16th/17th century kitchen for example and four ‘stüe’ one of which is decorated and dated 1576, at one time the Local Council base, now devoted to the history and institutions of the valley; of the other three – all 18th century, one is concentrated on the history of Palàzz and Governance, further ones to the Abbot Foppoli, to typical families and characters of the valley.
Other sections are devoted to women at work, childhood games, mountaineering, winter sports, tourism. geology, minerals, environmental issues, plants, archaeology, and an educational studio on the theme of ‘Water Power’.
The Albigna valley is the perfect spot where you can practise a wide range of outdoor sports in Autumn.
Reachable either on foot or by using the convenient cable ...
When it rains chestnuts! Discovering Autumn in Valchiavenna through the eyes of a Dutch biker.
Valchiavenna was the muse and inspiration of a quite extraordinary reportage, which last ...
With Giacomo Gandini’s story, we are introducing a new feature to our magazine, dedicated to stories that intertwine memory, nature and tradition inspired by the Alpine territory. This first story, entitled “The ...
Informazioni ex art. 1, comma 125, della legge 4 agosto 2017 n. 124
Relativamente agli aiuti di Stato e aiuti de Minimis, si rimanda a quanto contenuto nel
“Registro nazionale degli aiuti di Stato” di cui all’articolo 52 L. 234/2012 (www.rna.gov.it).
