Savignone

Centre of the upper Scrivia Valley, it lies at the foot of Mount Pianetto, surrounded by a green Apennine basin and the mountains that mark the watershed with the Brevenna Valley. Traces of the first settlements date back to the 4th century BC. Its origins are confirmed by the Golasecca settlements, the finds of which are preserved in the Pallavicini Museum in Genoa Pegli. It was a possession of the Tortonesi and in 1242 it was submitted to Genoa, which made it a fief of the Spinola family; at the end of the century it passed to the Fieschi counts of Lavagna. In 1636 Ugone Fieschi sold part of it to Genoa. Around the middle of the 19th century, thanks to its favourable position, it became a summer resort for Genoese families and even today Savignone has not lost its character as a holiday resort. The town is dominated by the remains of the Fieschi Castle, while the town square is overlooked by important historical buildings such as the Palazzo della Meridiana, the old hospital, Palazzo Fieschi and the church of San Pietro. The locality of Isorelle, built around the De Ferrari cotton mill, has some industrial buildings of particular interest. The aforementioned hamlet is also part of the Antola Regional Natural Park: one of the most enchanting areas of the Apennines and the Ligurian hinterland, thanks to the extraordinary panorama of the 1600 m Mount Antola and the activities of the nearby Brugneto Lake.