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 The
crest along which the path CAI no. 00 runs between Giovo Mountain, The Alps
of the Three Powers, Open Book Mountain, the Horn Mountain and the mountains
of Orsigna has, for centuries, represented an important natural obstacle
to reach Rome from Northern Italy. The legendary ventures of Hannibal's
troops, crossing through the Alps, only led them to the same if not worse
difficulties when crossing the Apennines, although the exact locations are
still cause for debate today. The ridge has greatly influenced the political
geography of this area, marking first the border between the Roman regions
of Tuscany and Emilia, then the border between the territories of Lucca,
Modena and Pistoia. These are the "three powers recalled in the place-name
(toponym) situated at an altitude of 2000 meters, near the mouth of Giovo,
where the old "ducal road" began its climb, connecting Modena
to Lucca and where the boundaries of the three territories met.
Before the opening of the Abetone pass, following the construction of
the new road to Modena located on the right slope of the Lima, one of
the main routes to cross the Apennine towards Modena was the path on the
left slope of the Lima. It went from Cutigliano, the Melo, Rivoreta and
reached Fiumalbo through the saddle called "Foce delle Verginette",
situated at an altitude of 1492 meters between Mount Maori and Open Book
Mountain, and which in olden times was known as "Serra delle Motte". |
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 The
bridge over the Sestaione to Casotti of Cutigliano |
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 This
is one of the most important works on the road ordered by Pietro Leopoldo
to connect Pistoia and the Grand Dukedom Tuscany to the territories of Modena
and to Northern Italy. The bridge, completed in 1799, was formed by two
elliptic arches supported by a central pillar and was designed by the abbot
and royal mathematician Leonardo Ximenes, to whom we owe the construction
of the road and the most important hydraulic engineering and road works
of Tuscany during the 18th century. After being destroyed on the 1st of
October 1944 during World War Two, the bridge was rebuilt four years later
following the project and artistic guidelines of Architect Alidamo Preti,
reproducing the original model as faithfully as possible.
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| The
new parishes of Ricci: Melo, Pianosinatico, Pian degli Ontani |
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 The
establishment of new parishes is one of the most relevant results of the
reform acted out by Bishop Scipione de' Ricci in the 1780s in the territory
of Pistoia, which included the Mountain. The opening of the Ximenes road
in the Reno and Lima valleys greatly altered the territorial asset and led
to a different distribution of the few religious settlements. The Bishop
desired to revisit those places, until then abandoned, in his Memoirs: "The
distance of the roads, the difficult access, particularly in winter when
snow made it impossible for the vicar to visit those souls, rendered these
places isolated" (S. de' Ricci, Memorie, Pistoia 1980, I, rist., p.
422).
With the decree issued on the 2nd of October 1785, three new parishes
were established in the Lima Valley, the Melo, Pian degli Ontani and Pianosinatico,
while the other establishments regard the high basin of the Reno, the
Apennine ridge and the area of Sambuca. The new parish of Melo, dedicated
to Saint Giovanni Crisostomo, served about sixty families and was created
parceling out part of the territory of the parish of Cutigliano. Also
the parish of Pian degli Ontani, dedicated to Saints Mary and Cirillo
and the parish of Pianosinatico, dedicated to Saint Policarpo, were created
in the same way. |
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| The
folk songs of the Mountain |
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 The
Mountain area of Pistoia preserves remarkable evidence of the spoken tradition,
a heritage of folk songs and customs handed down thanks to the interest
of the studies during the 19th century and the passionate work carried out
by researchers, musicians and folk groups in the past decades who have tried
to collect the memories of older generations, giving life to a musical archive
of the Pistoiese Apennines.Besides the singing of the "maggiaioli" (held in various mountain locations during the night between the 30th of April and the 1st of May), during certain celebrations it is still possible to listen to improvised sung theme poetry ("contrasts" or competitions in octaves). The octaves are verses composed of eight hendecasyllables that follow a pattern of ABABABCC: the first six hendecasyllables are alternate rhymes, the last two are rhymed couplets but different to the preceding verses. The ability of the competitors resides in improvising the verses making it difficult for the antagonist to find the following rhyme. The improvising poets - among which the renowned Beatrice of Pian degli Ontani (1803-1885) - "were very popular within the community. They were expected not only to liven up the numerous celebrations and gatherings but also to give comments and opinions on facts and events, the conditions of life and work that were truly liberal [...]. The extemporary poets were thus the critical conscience, the true soul of the people" (S. Gargini, Non son poeta e non ho mai studiato cantate voi che siete alletterato, Comune di S. Marcello 1986, p. 38). |
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| 5.
Beatrice of Pian degli Ontani, shepherd poetess |
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 Beatrice
Bugelli, better known as Beatrice of Pian degli Ontani, was born in 1803
in Conio, a small village of Melo in the borough of Cutigliano. Having lost
her mother when very young, she spent her youth with her father, a stonemason,
often traveling to Maremma. At the age of 20, she married the shepherd Matteo
Bernardi and moved to Catino, a plateau between Pian di Novello and Sestaione,
and there began to manifest her artistic skills in improvised poetry. After
her house was destroyed in 1836 due to the Sestaione River flooding, she
moved to a smaller abode near Pian di Novello, where she died in 1885. Her
life was marked by strife and hardship: the family contrasts, eight children
to bring up, the premature death of the eldest and losing her husband prematurely.
Illiterate and of modest background, the "shepherd poetess" (thus
named by Alessandro Chiappelli), represented in exemplary fashion the genuine
values and the spontaneity of the popular culture. Her confidence, acute
spirit and strong character, make Beatrice one of the most celebrated protagonists
in the history of modern improvised poetry."In Cutigliano I found a rich heritage of folk songs [...]. From Pian degli Ontani I summoned Beatrice, a woman of about 30 years, wife of a shepherd, who can't read or write but who can improvise octaves with no effort and who hardly ever gets a verse wrong" (N. Tommaseo, Gita nel Pistojese, "Antologia. Giornale di scienze lettere e arti", vol. XLVIII, 1832, p. 26). Fired by the admiration of eminent philologists and men of letters (such
as Tommaseo, Giuliani, Giusti, d'Azeglio, Tigri, Barbi, Pascoli, Fucini)
"the legend of Beatrice and various other poets of the Apennine [...]
was then spread to a larger and exclusive international circle thanks
to the work of Francesca Alexander and the mediation of John Ruskin. Ruskin
published the splendid Roadside Songs of Tuscany in 1885, including a
collection of carefully selected songs and illustrated by Francesca Alexander,
virginal figure encompassing the tunes and charm of an era" (G. Chelucci,
Fortuna della montagna, in Le guide di Pistoia e del suo territorio dal
manoscritto alla stampa, a cura di D. Danesi, Siena 1998, p. 92). |
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| Rispetti
di Beatrice di Pian degli Ontani |
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| The
natural boundaries and protected areas |
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The mountain landscape in the high valley of Sestaione, with its towering peaks and cliffs, manifests the role of natural boundary represented for centuries by this strip of territory. The orographic and geological configuration and the presence of red fir trees, makes these mountains valuable evidence of the botanical and forest areas, to be conserved and protected. Sensitive to the work of preservation, the National Corps of forest rangers has established three protected areas since the 1970's. The Biogenetic Nature Reserve of the "Pian degli Ontani" covers
an area of 500 hectares in the Cutigliano municipality from 1100 to 1800
meters above sea level. Established in 1977, and characterized by spectacular
beech woods, of notable genetic qualities, which are used for harvesting
seeds and small plants to be used for future reforesting plans. Within
the reserve we can find a room set aside specifically for environmental
education. The nature reserve of Campolino - accessible with a permit from the forest
guard - covers an area of 98 hectares in the Abetone municipality on the
left side of the river Sestaione from 1500 to 1850 meters above sea level.
This area is of great interest to scientists, it was created between 1971
and 1972 with the aim of conserving the remains of the autochthon Red
Fir wood, one of the most southern of Europe, and the entire surrounding
ecosystem, which has similar characteristics of the Alps, visible in the
herbaceous and shrubby plants typical of the alpine flora. The uneven
morphology of the area has created swamps and lakes of distinct beauty
and environmental importance such as the lakes of Greppo and Le Lamacce.
The peat bogs of these wet areas are of great interest for the study of
fossil pollen and allow the research of the ancient flora of the Apennines.
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