Fumane

The district of Fumane is 20 kilometers apart from Verona and it includes the community of Breonio, Cavalo, Gorgusello, Manune, Mazzurega and Molina.

The Fumane valley, also called the "Valley of Progni" for the abundance of waterways, is the westernmost of the valleys of Lessinia. In this land dominates the cultivation of the grapevine, sometimes mixed with the olive and cherry cultivation.

All the territory of Fumane has been inhabited since prehistoric times. There are numerous sites that have returned archaeological finds, dated back from the Paleolithic to the Bronze Age. The eighteenth century han been a time of important renewal of the religious construction industry.

The area of Fumane offers a lot of points of intrest, like the Waterfalls Park in Molina. Opened in July 1973, the park covers an area of about 150 hectares and it is classified as "a natural reserve with educational purposes". Dipped in a lush vegetation there are wonderful examples of surface rock excavation carried out by the rivers that have given rise to waterfalls, lakes, caves and cliffs. The charm and interest of the park are completed by the adjoining Botanical Museum, which includes all the plant species present in the Natural Park of Lessinia. Recently the Malga and the Molin De Lorenzo have been restored and opened to the public. Upon reservation you can assist respectively to the production of cheese and to the flour milling.

Molina village still preserves the characteristics of a medieval village, with the stone architecture of western Lessinia and ancient courts.

Along the old road that goes from Fumane to Molina in the Val dei Progni the archaeologist Giovanni Solinas discovered what is now called “Cave of Fumane”. It is a prehistoric site that was occupied by Neanderthals and by so-called Modern men (Homo sapiens).

The cave was in the past decorated with red paints, of which some fragments have been preserved, evidence of the figurative arts of the Upper Paleolithic. Among these, the most important depicts an anthropomorphic figure painted in red ocher mixed with only water, the so-called "Shaman", considered the oldest painting found in Europe, returned to 35.000 years ago.

The archaeological site has been transformed in a museum and it is possible to visit it on reservation.

There are many villas and churches with a great historical and artistic importance, and they are located throughout the territory of Fumane.

One of the most important is Villa della Torre, dating back to the mid-sixteenth century. The villa is designed and built in harmony with the environment, with an artificial progression of scalar plans, innovative for the Verona area. The villa has a closed scheme with peristyle in the center, around which overlooks the various rooms and acts as a pivot to the entire complex. Fountains and grottos enhanced the three courtyards. For the authorship of the factory, the art history has summoned Michele Sanmicheli (1484-1559) and Giulio Romano, assuming an intervention of the famous plasterer Bartolomeo Ridolfi, collaborator of Andrea Palladio. In particular, the wonderful and huge fireplaces have been assigned to Ridolfi. The private chapel, which is located along the perimeter wall of the house to the inside, is generally attributed to Sanmicheli.

The Madonna de La Salette Sanctuary was built on the hill overlooking the village of Fumane in 1860, when the country was threatened by a plague of "late blight".  The disease attacked the vineyards from the valley destroying them. To avoid the pestilence, the inhabitants built on the hill Incisa a sanctuary dedicated to the Virgin Mary appeared in La Salette (France).

From the beautiful square in front of the building you can admire the entire valley of Fumane and Valpolicella. The sanctuary is accessible from the town center by car, by bike or on foot, through two paths or through an uphill path flanked by shrines.