5 Things to do in San Secondo di Pinerolo That You Shouldn't Miss

Miradolo castle is located at the beginning of the Chisone Valley. The building is divided into two parts: the noble residence and a more rustic part dated between the 17th and 18th century. In the second part of the 18th century, the Castle was redesigned and enlarged. For architectural purposes, detailed historical research of the archives and more recent oral testimonies was undertaken in order to restore the Castle to its former glory. The first piece of information links the history of the Castle, originally called a dairy farm, to the Macello family who, even without a feudal estate, were the most important land owners in the region. Giovanni Battista Macello modified his family name from Macello to Massel and subsequently enlarged his estate acquiring the marquisate of Caresana. In 1866 marquise Teresa Massel married Luigi Count Cacherano di Bricherasio, who, as a wedding present, renovated the old “farm” and transformed it into a noble residence in neogothic style, traces of which we can still see today. They had two children, Sofia and Emanuele. The latter, who died before his time in 1904, was among the founding members of FIAT, one of the first car factories in Italy. Sofia, who is remembered for her intellectual and social engagements, was a pupil of Lorenzo Delleani, a regular guest at the artistic meetings she organised. The Countess Sofia di Bricherasio, the last surviving member of the family, died in 1950 leaving Miradolo Castle to the Religious Order of San Marzano of Don Orione, which transformed the Castle into a spiritual retreat. Over the following years, building work was carried out although it did not always follow the original plans. Later on the Castle was abandoned. In 2007 the estate, which had been abandoned since the Nineties, was acquired by a private group. The new owners, who wish to take the castle back to its origins and to restore its former glory to enrich the local area, have started a restoration project. The Cosso Foundation has been put in charge of all the initiatives that can return the castle to a cultural reference point and a workshops for ideas, as it was at the time of the Countess Sofia di Bricherasio.