The Village of Ornica - Historical and Rural Center

The historic center of Ornica makes up a large part of the urban fabric of the village and preserves almost intact the traditional architectural features, made up of old houses leaning against each other overlooking twisted lanes with strictly cobblestone paving. The old dwellings are well maintained, with severe stone doorways, wooden balconies and windowsills whose sills are graced with pots of multicolored flowers. Recent innovations enabled by the establishment of the albergo diffuso have prompted the owners of commercial and accommodation facilities to display at the entrance a series of colorful signs carefully crafted to respect the traditional physiognomy of the places. Some buildings retain reflections of their owners' important past: this is the case with the Gualteroni palace whose history is identified with that of the village itself. The house shows signs of a 19th-century makeover, with a stone portal and windows embellished with floral decorations. In the center of the facade is a fresco of St. Ambrose, patron saint of the village, painted in1817. In the oldest part of the historic center is the portico called Pòrtec di Sancc (Portico of the Saints), where according to an ancient tradition the poorest dead in the village were buried. The walls of the portico were decorated with frescoes with sacred subjects, and the area reserved for burials was enclosed with gates to prevent access by beasts.