Quiliano: History and treasures

The Municipality of Quiliano consits of two main towns: Quiliano and Valleggia. It has also got three mountain villages: Cadibona, Montagna and Roviasca. On the territory there are then several charming small villages; some of them are situated on the hills, among green areas of pinewoods and chestnut forests, oak and beech trees.
The territory of Quiliano offers to an attentive visitor a lot of hidden treasures, which suddenly show themselves in all their glory.
Small villages, which are enchased like jewels in the green valleys, well marked hiking trails, leading to areas where the environment is still intact and respected.
Churches, ancient palaces, Roman bridges, archaeological remains of past ages, qualified and refined gastronomy lead the visitor of Quiliano in a delicate and almost magical tour. The tourist will be able to discover the history of the country by simply observing its territory.
Near the small village of Pomo, on the road to the charming small village of Faia, you can find the remains of an ancient castle, that was built around 600 AD.
The neighbourhood of Tiassano, in the suburb of Valleggia, is the ancient Terentianum, a small cluster of houses at the foot of the ridge which separates the valley of Quiliano torrent from that of Segno torrent.
The valley of Quazzola torrent, a beautiful valley which was one of the most important roads during the age of Roman Empire, which connected the coastal area of Vado Ligure (the ancient Vada Sabatia) to hinterland, through the Pass of Cadibona.
The Quazzola Valley houses an interesting complex of Roman bridges, dating back to the 1st-2nd century AD, which were built just to improve the practicability of the main road network during Roman Age. In fact, they follow the layout of the ancient Via Julia Augusta.
They can be considered as one of the most important architectural remains of Roman Age in the country of Savona.
Opposite to the town of Valleggia, on the other side of Quiliano torrent, in an area with a strong vocation for tourism and culture, there is the important site of San Pietro in Carpignana, archaeological park and entrance portal to Quiliano, meeting place for a food and wine trail, but also historical, environmental and artistic feature among flavours and aromas of the territory.
Here, in front of the remains of a magnificent century-old cypresses avenue, you can see the church of San Pietro in Carpignano, popularly known as “San Pè di Coi” (it means “Saint Peter of the cabbages”, but is a popular word warp of “San Pietro in Vincoli”).
The earliest mention of this site dates back to 1180. The church and the surrounding area are subjected to restriction by the Archaeological Authority, because of the numerous archaeological discoveries; even today, the archaeological digs offer, over and over again, a range of new archaeological and ceramic finds of a period, dating much earlier than 1000 AD.
The complex dates surely back to the pre-Romanesque period, but it was certainly built on much older remains.
The site is pleasant and extremely romantic, with its bell tower emerging from the green of the surrounding orchards.
From the neighbourhood of Orso, in the center of the town of Quiliano, you can walk up a charming street, lined with stone walls which have still “broken glasses” on the top of them (like the “broken glasses” on the top of the walls mentioned in the poetry of our Ligurian poet Eugenio Montale) till you arrive in the neighbourhood of Morosso and from here, still climbing along terraced vineyards, to the Convent of the Capuchin Friars.
Here, in addition to the magnificent panoramic view on the territory of Quiliano, from the mountain to the sea, you can visit the church, which is dedicated to St.Mary of the Angels, and the interior of the Convent, with its ancient cloister, where visitors can really feel a peace and a quiet which will full and restore their soul.