Berzo Demo ( Camunian: ) is an Italian

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces ('' province''). The can ...

Val Camonica Val Camonica (also ''Valcamonica'' or Camonica Valley, Eastern Lombard: ''Al Camònega'') is one of the largest valleys of the central Alps, in eastern Lombardy, Italy. It extends about from the Tonale Pass to Corna Trentapassi, in ...

province of Brescia The Province of Brescia ( it, provincia di Brescia; Brescian: ) is a Province in the Lombardy administrative region of northern Italy. It has a population of some 1,265,964 (as of January 2019) and its capital is the city of Brescia. With an ...

, in Lombardy, northern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Geography

The town of Berzo Demo is nestled on the southern slopes of the Pian della Regina. It is formed by three villages: the more downstream is Demo, the central one is Berzo and on top is Monte. It is bounded by other communes of

Cedegolo Cedegolo ( Camunian: ) is an Italian ''comune'' of 1,258 inhabitants in Val Camonica, province of Brescia, in Lombardy, northern Italy. Geography The village of Cedegolo is located in a narrow gorge formed by Oglio river, on its eastern side. ...

, Cevo, Malonno, Paisco Loveno, Sellero, Sonico.

History

Monday 6 April 1299, the consuls of the vicinia of Berzo and Demo go to Cemmo where is Cazoino Capriolo, Chamberlain of the Bishop of Brescia Berardo Maggi. Here swear according to the usual formula loyalty to the bishop, and pay the tithe due. On 15 May 1365 the Bishop of Brescia Enrico Sessa invests iure feuds for a tenth of the rights in the territories of Breno, Vione, Vezza, Sonico, Malonno, Berzo Demo, Astrio, Ossimo and Losine Giovanni and Gerardo sons of Pasino Federici of Mu. The peace of Breno of 31 December 1397, the representatives of the community of Demo, Albertino di Martino di Demo and the notary Giovannino Boldrini of Saviore, stands on the Ghibelline bank of

Oglio The Oglio (; Latin ''Ollius'', or ''Olius''; Lombard ''Òi''; Cremonese ''Ùi'') is a left-side tributary of the river Po in Lombardy, Italy. It is long. In the hierarchy of the Po's tributaries, with its of length, it occupies the 2nd plac ...

. On 17 September 1423 the Bishop of Brescia Francesco Marerio invests iure feuds for a 10th of the rights in the territories of Monno, Cevo, Andrist, Grumello, Saviore, Cemmo, Ono, Sonico, Astri, Malegno, Cortenedolo, Vione, Incudine and Berzo Demo at Bertolino della Torre of Cemmo. In 1760 Berzo Demo and Monte had 790 inhabitants. Between 1927 and 1948 (Royal Decree 28 September 1927) Berzo Demo was joint to

Main sights

The churches of Berzo Demo are: * Berzo ** Parish Church of St. Eusebius, fifteenth century in origin, extended in the seventeenth. The ancon of the high altar was made by Pietro Ramus. * Demo ** Parish of

San Lorenzo San Lorenzo is the Italian and Spanish name for Lawrence of Rome, Saint Lawrence, the 3rd-century Christian martyr, and may refer to: Places Argentina * San Lorenzo, Santa Fe * San Lorenzo Department, Chaco * Monte San Lorenzo, a mountain on t ...

; the portal bears the date 1757 ** Church of

St. Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...

, near the bell tower, now deconsecrated. Within a tombstone dated 1640. **

Church of San Zeno Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

, on a small hill at the foot of the commune, is of the sixteenth century. It has a triangular tower-bell. ** Church dedicated to

Saint Valentine Saint Valentine ( it, San Valentino; la, Valentinus) was a 3rd-century Roman saint, commemorated in Western Christianity on February 14 and in Eastern Orthodoxy on July 6. From the High Middle Ages, his Saints' Day has been associated with a ...

(or "of the Dead"): Until a few years ago it was covered with votive offerings (

ex voto An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or to a divinity; the term is usually restricted to Christian examples. It is given in fulfillment of a vow (hence the Latin term, short for ''ex voto suscepto'', "from the vow made") or in gratitude o ...

), especially anatomical ones (legs, feet, hands). *The bell tower of 1865 stands on the ruins of a medieval tower-house

Culture

The scütüm are in

camunian dialect Eastern Lombard is a group of closely related variants of Lombard, a Gallo-Italic dialect spoken in Lombardy, mainly in the provinces of Bergamo, Brescia and Mantua, in the area around Cremona and in parts of Trentino. Its main variants are B ...

nicknames, sometimes personal, elsewhere showing the characteristic features of a community. The one which characterize the people of * Berzo is Bersàgoi * Demo is Gòs * Monte is Gàcc On 28 June, the eve of

feast of Saints Peter and Paul The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul or Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul is a liturgical feast in honor, of the martyrdom in Rome of the apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which is observed on 29 June. The celebration is of ancient Chris ...

, the villagers put an

egg white Egg white is the clear liquid (also called the albumen or the glair/glaire) contained within an egg. In chickens it is formed from the layers of secretions of the anterior section of the hen's oviduct during the passage of the egg. It forms arou ...

in a bottle which they leave in the open air until the next morning; albumin coagulated in filaments then evokes the masts and sails of a

boat A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size, shape, cargo or passenger capacity, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically found on i ...

, it is the boat of Saint Peter.

References

Sources

External links

Historical photos - Lombardia Beni Culturali
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Lombardy