Bianzone: Between History, Faith and Agricultural Tradition

Bianzone is an ancient Valtellina village of about 1,300 inhabitants , located on a cone upstream of the Stelvio road. Once a holiday destination for nobles and bourgeoisie , Today, the village retains an old-world charm, where life flows at a slower pace than the modern frenzy.

The Roots between Mystery and Historical Documents

The origin of the name Bianzone remains partly a mystery. While some scholars assume Etruscan roots, others suggest a Roman derivation from the proper name Blandius.

However, the official birth of the village is set at a precise moment: the’8 February 1100. On that date, the sisters Nalucia and Pagana Della Torre donated the church of San Siro to the archpriest of Bormio. The link with Bormio lasted until 1521, when the parish of Bianzone became independent.

Faith and Territory: The Sanctuary of the Madonna del Piano

One of the strongest symbols of the community is the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Piano, whose history is linked to an event of the 1675.

• The apparition: On 26 March of that year, the Virgin appeared in a dream to Battista dei Flagelli, asking for a church to be built.
• Water protection: Over the centuries, the shrine became a reference point for citizens during the frequent flooding of torrents from the Boalzo Valleys.
• Restoration: In order to preserve the monumental façade, the highway was moved further south, freeing the building from the debris and structures that were suffocating it.

A Heritage of Art and Architecture

The town centre offers several valuable historical testimonies:

• Church of San Siro: A monument of Romanesque art with a Latin cross plan, a bell tower decorated with mullioned and three-light windows and a Baroque façade.
• Palazzo Besta-Lambertenghi: A country residence famous for its wrought-iron dragons on the cornices and interior rooms frescoed with subjects from the Jerusalem Delivered.
• La Gatta“ seal”: A sober building in the centre of a wine estate, a symbol of the historical local dedication to wine production.

The Economy: From Wine to Apples

The history of Bianzone is intrinsically linked to the land. If during Graubünden's rule the wine was the main commercial attraction, over time, there has been a shift towards the apple cultivation. This change led to the emergence of cooperatives to manage land holdings that, due to inheritance, had been excessively fragmented.

Towards the Future: Sport and Youth

Under the administration of mayor Mauro Castelanelli, the municipality looks to the year 2000 by focusing on young people to counter emigration to larger centres.

• InfrastructureInvestments of approximately 400 million lire were made for a new multi-purpose sports field and 325 million lire for a gymnasium in Via Roma.
• Environment: The municipality started separate waste collection in cooperation with the dynamic Parish Centre.

Bianzone thus presents itself as a village that, while proud of its agricultural and noble past, seeks to offer new opportunities to new generations so that they can continue to live in the land of their ancestors.

Reading accounts of the past has its charm because it allows us to make a comparison with the present. Some things have been achieved, but still several problems remain, such as road safety and the depopulation of small towns. There is still a long way ahead, but the people of Bianzone, as mentioned in the article, when there is work to be done!

Also worth mentioning are the advertising pages for some companies, shops and premises of the past, some of which are no longer there. In this regard, if anyone has photos or information about shops and shops that once existed in the village, please leave them with the municipality or send them to the Ecomuseo email address: info@ecomuseoterrazzeretiche.it They will be used by the Primary School for a project to map the ancient crafts once present in Bianzone.

Archive photos found in the Library and related to the inauguration of the Gymnasium and Library during Mayor Mauro Castelanelli's term of office and archive images of the Palio delle contrade and the summer centre a few years ago.

L'articolo 1 MAGGIO 1993 – IL QUOTIDIANO ‘IL GIORNO’ PARLAVA DI BIANZONE proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

A story born in 1986
President Salvatore Scordari, visibly emotional, retraced the steps of a journey that began in 1986, when he had just arrived in the village and accepted the challenge of leading the group, encouraged by his wife Claudia Mevio and his new Valtellina friends. In his speech, Scordari paid tribute to the founding members, delivering a gift to those present and to the families of those who are no longer with us.

Among the names remembered with warm applause were the founders Igino Ronchi, Iolanda Castelanelli, Bruna Garzetti, Laura Nemesi, Stella Augugliaro, Alberto Giudice, Franco Paggi, Erica Zucchetti and Marisa Delle Coste.

Special recognition also went to the current Board staff - Bruna Fiorina, Franca Gosatti, Loretta Caligari, Renato Gusmeroli and Riccarda Negrini - tireless driver of association activities.

The value of wisdom
Bringing greetings from the municipal administration was Deputy Mayor Luana Dorsa, who read a speech focusing on the profound meaning of the “Third Age”. “You are valuable to our community“he began, emphasising that the association is a
example of “continuous becoming” capable of uniting different generations through the desire to be together. The deputy mayor also praised the vitality of the members, mentioning the association's internal walking group.

Projects for tomorrow
Despite the important anniversary, the gaze is already turned to the future. President Scordari expressed the hope that the openness towards young people and others in the country, which has started in recent years, can be further consolidated. “Sbut for new people to join
to us with new enthusiasm and new ideas” concluded the president, symbolically making an appointment for everyone to meet in ten years' time to celebrate the association's half-century anniversary together.

Archive photo by Igino Ronchi and Franca Gosatti

Photo of 21 April 2026 by Franca Gosatti

L'articolo 40 ANNI DI TERZA ETÀ proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

on 25 April, the day dedicated to St Mark and the Liberation, it was traditional to go in procession to the church of San Martino. 

The church of San Martino has early medieval origins.

It is oriented towards the equinoctial sunrise and dedicated to the holy bishop of Tours, held in high esteem in Carolingian times.

For years, the church has been closed to the public, it has even been deconsecrated and the bell, cast by Gregorio Quadrio of Ponte in Valtellina in 1591 and donated by Gianluigi Pergola, has been removed.

Despite this, the people of Bianzone maintain a strong bond with this sacred place on the border with Villa di Tirano, in the area where the village originally stood. Memories are still alive in the older people of the celebrations for St. Gotthard:

At the beginning of May, a mass dedicated to St Gotthard was celebrated in St Martin's Church. In the churchyard there were stalls and it was an important feast especially for children, who could enjoy, at least for a day, the sight of many toys and in some cases there was even the possibility of taking at least one of them home. 

The typical sweet of this feast was the red pipe.

Every year, to enhance this sacred property, a nativity scene is set up in the ossuary of the 18th-century structure, now totally bare, once completely painted. Among the various depictions was a goat symbolising the devil, which parents resorted to in order to strike fear into their children if they came home late at night.

The interior of the church, with a single nave covered with several vaults, is bare. Traces of 18th-century painting remain on the left wall where the St. Gotthard altar was placed, in the presbytery and especially in the sacristy. Here, the image of St. Martin on horseback cutting the cloak to cover the poor is still clearly visible.

In the second half of the 1970s it was the subject of major restoration work strongly desired by the then parish priest Don Virginio Zubiani who wanted to reopen it for worship. The roof of the church and ossuary, replaced the stained glass windows, placed the ducting, painted the facade main, repaired the gate, The deteriorated concrete fountain was removed and replaced by the current one. fontanelle embedded in the churchyard wall. Inside, the cornice e the electrical system and the stone slabs had been prepared to remake the floor which were then placed by parish priest Don Bruno Rocca.

Despite all these works, the Church of St. Martin was never reopened.

Its brightness, acoustics and location accessible by car, on foot and by bicycle make it a potentially suitable place for visitors.

quoted from:

• book ‘When Fireflies Flew - Volume 2’ by Vanda Cerveri
• Bianzone tra vigne, chiese, palazzi e antiche contrade‘ guide by Gianluigi Garbellini

Photo of 11 April 2026

L'articolo LA CHIESA DI SAN MARTINO: UN LUOGO CHIUSO CHE HA DIRITTO DI RIOTTENERE IL RICONOSCIMENTO CHE MERITA proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

This event, in contrast to the nearby Sanctuary of the Madonna of Tirano, has never been officially recognised, however, a parchment memorial has been found that mentions the “The Apparition. The The manuscript in question was found in 1911 in the Fornonzini-Confortola house, now the site of the nursery school, by priest Federico Cattaneo, coadjutor with the title of spiritual bursar of the Madonna del Piano, and returned to the parish archives. The text reads:

Ad maiorem Dei gloriam et Beatissimae Virginis. Mariae. Ad perpetuam rei memoriam

“In the year one thousand six hundred and seventy-five, on the sixth day of April, Battista de Flagelli, or Fragiti di Bianzone, a simple and God-fearing man, as the Rt Rev. Provost was leaving his house to go and celebrate Mass, met me at the door of my house in the Rectory, all thoughtful and greeting me, said he had something important to discuss with me and I said: and what do you have to tell me?  He said, full of redness, that he did not dare to reveal it, because, being a sinful man, he did not know whether he would believe it, but in any case that he could not keep silent about it, because, after knowing it, he could not have rest or repose unless he revealed it. I pleaded with him, thinking he wanted to talk to me about something else, and he added:
The truth is that on the 26th day of the last month of March, which was the first day after the Annunciation of the Ever-Virgin Mary, after having commended myself to God and to his Most Holy Mother Mary at the beginning of the night, at about two o'clock in the morning, I was awake in bed and saw the poor, black house, in which I usually sleep, shining with rays and splendours greater than those of the Sun. Mother Mary at the beginning of the night, at about two o'clock, when I woke up and was in bed, I saw the poor black house in which I usually sleep shining with rays and splendours greater than those of the sun, indeed it seemed that the whole house was made of the finest gold, and I felt such pleasure in my soul It seemed as if I were in Paradise and among so many delights and splendours I heard a voice, and it seemed to me to be the Virgin Mary, if I saw her well, who said to me, go, announce to the Provost and to the people of Bianzone that in my honour they should have an altar raised and my temple situated here on this plain reduced to a more honourable state, Tell them that if they do so, I promise them my blessing and protection, otherwise they will beware of the chastisements that you are enduring and at that time, since I was infirm with a ruptured intestine, I felt healed as I am now healthy and I truly believe that it was the Blessed Virgin although I did not discern her among so many splendours, and I said they would not believe me, and I was warned that I should begin to lead stones and rocks and contribute something of my poverty, so I promised to give her two spoonfuls of wine, and at once I led a few cartloads of stones, and so at that moment that great splendour departed: I delayed till now because I did not dare to say it, since I am an abject person, poor and a great sinner, but finding no rest I was forced to say it, and I offer to endure any torment to confirm this truth. I then told him that he should seek out the Bianzone officials, and he replied that I wanted to tell them on his behalf and that he offered to appear and affirm the whole thing; I then went to celebrate Holy Mass and afterwards I spoke about it with my Lord Canons, that is to say the R Sig. Sig.P. Antonio Zanina, with Sig. P. Carlo Adda and with R. Sig. P. Giov. Nodari, who with other people went separately to meet the Baptist to inform him of the truth and to all replied the same, and after a few days I requested that the Council of this Mag.After a few days I requested that the Council of this Magistrate's College be assembled, since I wanted to speak to him about this success, and in the said Council, having explained everything as above, I told him that I could not canonically approve such an apparition, because this is to be done by the Lord Superiors, but in any case, since it is a pious and holy thing to restore the Church to a more honourable state, it would be good not to be against it, and that in doing this to the honour of the Virgin Mary, they could only expect great good.
So that Magical Council determined the adherir to these aids as follows...”.”

After the Apparition took place in the humble, blackened house of Battista De Flagelli, located close to Piazza Vanoni, a grandiose project to enlarge the Piano church was initiated, which also led to the construction of the present monumental façade that stands out from the view of those arriving from Sondrio.

The event is recounted in the following volumes:

• ‘From One Hail Mary to the Other’ by Vanda Cerveri
• Bianzone - The sanctuary of Madonna del Piano by Dante Sosio
• Bianzone caskets of art and culture by Emanuela Cerveri
• Bianzone among vineyards, churches, palaces and ancient quarters by Gianluigi Garbellini

It is also annually reminded on the Mary The Immaculate One 

L'articolo 26 MARZO 1675: LA MADONNA APPARVE A GIAN BATTISTA DE’ FLAGELLI proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

We became aware of this show after the 40th anniversary ceremony of the Madonna del Piano. We contacted the organisers who told us that they would be coming to Aprica. We in Bianzone don't have a stage and suitable equipment to host them but we will go as a representative. Saturday 21 FEBRUARY at 21 right here in Aprica, at the conference hall of the business centre. One thing we can share with you about this performance. It all started in 2020 from a project by a secondary school class in Milan. The students had to prepare two pages of screenplay about a sportsman who left his mark as an athlete and as a man. The works were then evaluated by a jury of professionals from the worlds of entertainment, journalism and sport, and the work that was awarded was this one! As a reward, the two pages written by the student became a real script that has been presented to the public for some time now. On Saturday it will come to Valtellina for the first time. Come numerous to see it. In the meantime, we leave you with an article written by Vanda Cerveri from the old site that speaks precisely about Nino Bibbia:

L'articolo SPETTACOLO TEATRALE SU NINO BIBBIA proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

L'articolo GIORNATA DELLA MEMORIA proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

L'articolo CAPODANNO DI UNA VOLTA proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

L'articolo CONCERTO D’ALTRO CANTO proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

The text evokes difficult times, marked by pandemics (such as cholera and Spanish flu) and the tragedies of world wars. It dwells in particular on the past century marked by profound changes with the advent of progress that facilitated people's lives and accessibility on the one hand, but disrupted the natural habitat of yesteryear on the other.

The book is enriched with numerous photographs that help to bear witness to the past.

The title and subtitle (“Lights and Shadows”) recall the alternation between dark and serene moments in people's lives; fireflies represent small lights that soften the darkness.

L'articolo LIBRO ‘QUANDO VOLAVANO LE LUCCIOLE’ proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.

L'articolo Da un’Ave Maria all’altra proviene da Ecomuseo Bianzone.