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Cemmo

Cemmo, (camunian dialect: Hèm) is a frazione of Capo di Ponte, located right of river Oglio, beneath the Concarena.

It was one of the first settlements in Val Camonica, as it can be deduced from the numerous rock drawings that have been found here; nowadays it has a population of about 600.

It hosts the Pieve of Saint Syrus.

01Territory

The town is located on the right side of river Oglio, north of Clegna creek.

Cemmo as seen from Paspardo
Cemmo as seen from Paspardo

02History

Local feudal lords

Noble families which obtained feoffment on the town from the local bishop:

Family Period
Avogadro 1206 -
Botelli 1336 -
Della Torre 1423 -
St. Bartholomew's Church of the Umiliati
St. Bartholomew's Church of the Umiliati

03Historic center

The historic center of Cemmo hosts many old buildings with numerous portals, gable roofs and courtyards. The town originally possessed four main defensive doors that give the name to the annual event "4 Porte 4 Piazze" ("4 doors, 4 squares"). The town's main squares are:

Just beyond it is the district "Furen," a group of old houses located in the vicinity of the remains of an ancient furnace, living examples of traditional rural camuna. On the opposite bank of the river Clegna covers a green area in the countryside, called "Inimara", full of paths and streets with "orchards" (small gardens fenced).

  • Morciuolo square, which holds an old fountain with traditional blanket washing;
  • Pietro da Cemmo square, home of the parish church dedicated to St. Stephen;
  • the small square on Via San Faustino, before the church of Santa Maria;
  • Spiazzo della Berlina ("clearing of the limousine"), so named because it used to host the public processes; here was located the old town hall of Cemmo.

Much of the town's upper area is occupied by the Sisters of St. Dorothy's private school and the adjacent convent dedicated to Annunciata Cocchetti.

Just beyond it is located the "Furen" contrada, a group of old houses located next to the remains of an ancient furnace, living examples of traditional camunian architecture.

On the opposite bank of the Clegna creek covers a green area in the countryside, called "Inimara", full of paths and streets with broli (small orchards).

Parish church of Saint Stephen.
Parish church of Saint Stephen.

04Monuments and places of interest

Religious architecture

Cemmo's churches are:

  • Parish church of Saint Stephen, 16th century, Lombard-Romanesque architecture.
  • Church of Santa Maria and Elizabeth, situated on a cliff over the Clegna creek, 12th-13th century.
  • St. Bartholomew's Church of the Umiliati, 13th century. It was alienated by the suppression of the order in 1570.
  • Pieve of Saint Syrus, Romanesque age, overlooking the Oglio river.

There's also a small church inside the cloister.

UNESCO Heritage Sites

  • Parco archeologico comunale di Seradina-Bedolina
  • Parco archeologico nazionale dei Massi di Cemmo
Masso Cemmo 2; inscriptions.
Masso Cemmo 2; inscriptions.

05Personalities from Cemmo

Watch videos about CemmoExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article Cemmo, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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