Orta San Giulio
Encyclopedia
Orta San Giulio is a town and comune
(municipality) in the Province of Novara
in the Italian
region of Piedmont
, located about 100 km northeast of Turin
and about 40 km northwest of Novara
.
The town itself is built on a promontory which juts out from the eastern bank of Lake Orta
close to Isola San Giulio, an island which also falls within the municipal boundaries. The frazione
Legro stands on the hill which rises behind the promontory, Corconio is some 2 km further south, and again away from the lake, while Imola consists of a small number of dwellings between the two, but close to the lake on the road leading to Gozzano. The municipality borders on Pettenasco
to the north, Miasino
and Ameno
to the east, Bolzano Novarese
and Gozzano to the south, and San Maurizio d'Opaglio
and Pella to the west across the lake.
It is well known for the nearby Sacro Monte, which is a site of pilgrimage
and worship and, like the town itself and the island, is a popular destination for fairly small-scale tourism
. In 2003, the Sacro Monte of Orta
was inserted by UNESCO
in the World Heritage List.
In May 1882, Friedrich Nietzsche
and Lou Andreas-Salomé
, accompanied by her mother and a mutual friend, visited Orta for a few days on their way back from a Grand Tour
of Italy. The couple visited the Sacro Monte for some hours and Nietsche fell in love with the charming Russian. Salomé could not afterwards remember if she had kissed the philosopher and she was not in love with him, a fact which caused him much anguish.
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 Novara
Province of Novara
Novara is a province in the Piedmont region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Novara.It has an area of 1,339 km², and a total population of 365.156 . There are 88 communes in the province.-External links:*...
in 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 100 km northeast 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...
and about 40 km northwest of Novara
Novara
Novara is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With c. 105,000 inhabitants, it is the second most populous city in Piedmont after Turin. It is an important crossroads for commercial traffic along the routes from Milan to Turin...
.
The town itself is built on a promontory which juts out from the eastern bank of Lake Orta
Lake Orta
Lake Orta is a lake in northern Italy west of Lake Maggiore.It has been so named since the 16th century, but was previously called the Lago di San Giulio, after Saint Julius , the patron saint of the region; Cusio is a merely poetical name...
close to Isola San Giulio, an island which also falls within the municipal boundaries. The frazione
Frazione
A frazione , in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a comune; for other administrative divisions, see municipio, circoscrizione, quartiere...
Legro stands on the hill which rises behind the promontory, Corconio is some 2 km further south, and again away from the lake, while Imola consists of a small number of dwellings between the two, but close to the lake on the road leading to Gozzano. The municipality borders on Pettenasco
Pettenasco
Pettenasco is a comune in the Province of Novara in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about 100 km northeast of Turin and about 40 km northwest of Novara...
to the north, Miasino
Miasino
Miasino is a comune in the Province of Novara in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about 100 km northeast of Turin and about 40 km northwest of Novara...
and Ameno
Ameno
Ameno is a comune in the Province of Novara in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about 100 kilometres northeast of Turin and about 40 km northwest of Novara...
to the east, Bolzano Novarese
Bolzano Novarese
Bolzano Novarese is a comune in the Province of Novara in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about 100 km northeast of Turin and about 40 km northwest of Novara...
and Gozzano to the south, and San Maurizio d'Opaglio
San Maurizio d'Opaglio
San Maurizio d'Opaglio is a comune in the Province of Novara in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about 90 km northeast of Turin and about 40 km northwest of Novara...
and Pella to the west across the lake.
It is well known for the nearby Sacro Monte, which is a site of pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
and worship and, like the town itself and the island, is a popular destination for fairly small-scale tourism
Tourism in Italy
With more than 43.2 million tourists a year, Italy is the fourth highest tourist earner, and fifth most visited country in the world, behind France , Spain , United States , and China...
. In 2003, the Sacro Monte of Orta
Sacro Monte di Orta
The Sacro Monte di Orta is a Roman Catholic devotional complex in the comune of Orta San Giulio on the summit of a hill known as San Nicolao, which faces the western shore of Lake Orta...
was inserted by UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
in the World Heritage List.
In May 1882, Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...
and Lou Andreas-Salomé
Lou Andreas-Salomé
Lou Andreas-Salomé was a Russian-born psychoanalyst and author. Her diverse intellectual interests led to friendships with a broad array of distinguished western luminaries, including Nietzsche, Wagner, Freud, and Rilke.- Early years :Lou Salomé was born in St...
, accompanied by her mother and a mutual friend, visited Orta for a few days on their way back from a Grand Tour
Grand Tour
The Grand Tour was the traditional trip of Europe undertaken by mainly upper-class European young men of means. The custom flourished from about 1660 until the advent of large-scale rail transit in the 1840s, and was associated with a standard itinerary. It served as an educational rite of passage...
of Italy. The couple visited the Sacro Monte for some hours and Nietsche fell in love with the charming Russian. Salomé could not afterwards remember if she had kissed the philosopher and she was not in love with him, a fact which caused him much anguish.
External links
- Official website
- Official web site for European Sacred Mountains
- 3 spherical panoramas of Orta San Giulio