Argentera

Discover Argentera

Argentera is a mountain commune of 77 inhabitants in the province of Cuneo, Piedmont, occupying a surface area of roughly 76.52 square kilometres in the upper Valle Stura di Demonte, with its municipal centre standing at 1684 metres above sea level. The settlement is spread across several hamlets along the banks of the Stura river, surrounded by conifer forests, larch woods, high pastures and peaks that rise above 1684 metres, lying approximately 60 kilometres from Cuneo — about one hour by road along the SS21.

Argentera village in Piedmont: parish origins, wartime memory and living tradition

Argentera’s documented history centres on its ecclesiastical foundation: on 12 March 1545, Monsignor Gerolamo Vechiano, vicar of Cardinal Innocenzo Cybo, Archbishop of Turin, issued the edict establishing the parish of Argentera, carving its territory out of the older parish of Bersezio, some three kilometres away. The distance between the two settlements had made it difficult for local faithful — especially in winter — to reach the church of San Lorenzo for services. The new parish, like all those in the Valle Stura, remained under the jurisdiction of Turin until 1817, when the Diocese of Cuneo was created.

During the Second World War the hamlet of Grange was destroyed by fire, leaving behind only ruins that still reflect the traditional Alpine building techniques of the area: stone walls, narrow openings, wooden doors and windows, and roofs of wooden shingles. In the 1930s, Monsignor Riberi, a priest and historian from Cuneo, found in the archive of the parish of Sambuco a manuscript dating to the early sixteenth century containing Christmas songs composed at Argentera in Occitan. These texts, known as Nouvè, were part of a tradition of theatrical representations and sung performances held during the Christmas festivities. From the 1960s onwards, several musicians set the recovered texts to music; the version by Sergio Berardo became the best known. Other celebrated collections of Nouvè include those attributed to the poet Nicolas Saboly.

Argentera is also connected to the memory of Francesco Besucco, a young shepherd who became a pupil of Don Bosco and whose life the saint recorded in a written biography.

Churches, ruins and a smuggler’s house across the scattered commune

Argentera’s principal sites are two parish churches, a ruined wartime borgata, the high-altitude hamlet of Ferrere, and a small museum dedicated to smuggling, spread across a commune that extends from the valley floor to nearly 1684 metres at the summit of Enciastraia.

Chiesa parrocchiale dei Santi Pietro e Paolo

The parish church of Saints Peter and Paul, in the capoluogo, dates to the sixteenth century. Inside it preserves the Benedetto Crocifisso — the Blessed Crucifix — to which the local population has long shown particular devotion. The Festa del Benedetto Crocifisso remains one of the community’s recurring religious observances.

Chiesa parrocchiale di San Lorenzo, Bersezio

In the hamlet of Bersezio, the parish church of San Lorenzo has a documented history reaching back to the thirteenth century, when it functioned as an independent priory independent from the monastery of San Teofredo in Velay. Bersezio is today the most populous settlement in the commune and serves as the municipal seat.

Frazione Grange

Above the capoluogo, the borgata of Grange survives only as a group of ruined buildings. The structures show the characteristic features of alpine domestic architecture — stone walls, small openings, wooden doors and window frames, and roofs originally covered with wooden shingles. The settlement was destroyed by fire during the Second World War and has not been rebuilt.

Ferrere

At roughly 1684 metres, close to the French border, Ferrere is one of the best-preserved examples of traditional alpine building in the upper Valle Stura. The arrangement of the structures and their construction type have remained largely unaltered. The Colle del Ferro and the nearby Colle del Puriac, above the hamlet, were crossed by historical pilgrimage and emigration routes.

La Mizoun dal Countrabandìer, Ferrere

In the borgata of Ferrere, a former dwelling has been restored and converted into a small museum known as the Mizoun dal Countrabandìer — the smuggler’s house. The interior is arranged as it would have appeared some decades ago: a kitchen, a small bedroom, and the soulìer, a broad room with a wooden mezzanine. Objects and household tools on display relate to the practice of smuggling, which was historically widespread in this border area.

Prinardo and the chapel of Santa Maria Maddalena

The small rural borgata of Prinardo, beside the river Stura, is grouped around the chapel of Santa Maria Maddalena. No further detail about the chapel is recorded in the available sources beyond its presence and dedication.

Cheeses, cured meats and mountain produce from the upper Valle Stura di Demonte

Argentera sits within the province of Cuneo, whose territory is recognised by several certified designations, and the surrounding valleys offer visitors a reliable indication of what to expect at local tables. No certified product is exclusive to Argentera itself, but the provincial and regional framework is substantial. Castelmagno DOP, a firm mountain cheese produced in the Cuneo valleys, is among the most distinguished; Bra DOP is another Cuneo cheese worth seeking out. Among cured meats, Crudo di Cuneo DOP stands out as a local expression of the Piedmontese tradition of aged raw ham. Castagna Cuneo IGP and Fagiolo Cuneo IGP represent the agricultural side of the province, while Gorgonzola DOP adds a further recognised cheese to the picture.

The broader Piedmontese context brings additional character to the area. Alpine herbal liqueurs, ratafià, rosolio and vermouth belong to a long regional tradition of artisan drinks that visitors may encounter throughout the valleys. Wines with Cuneo connections include Barolo DOCG and Barbaresco DOCG from the Langhe, and Alta Langa DOCG; these are produced elsewhere in the province but are commonly found on wine lists across the area. The high-altitude pastures around Argentera and the borgate of Ferrere, at roughly 1684 metres, support bovine and ovine farming whose products feed directly into this provincial tradition.

Getting to Argentera and planning your stay in the upper Valle Stura

Argentera is reached most directly by car along the Strada Statale 21, which runs through the Valle Stura di Demonte: the village of Bersezio, the most populated settlement and municipal seat, lies approximately 60 km from Cuneo, a drive of roughly one hour. The road continues beyond Bersezio toward the switchbacks leading up to the Colle della Maddalena on the French border, making the valley a natural corridor for cross-border touring. The comune has no rail connection; a private vehicle is the practical choice for reaching the borgate scattered across its 76.52 square kilometres.

Summer, from June through September, is the most accessible season. The high pastures around Ferrere, at around 1684 metres, are open to walkers, and the ancient mule tracks crossing the Colle del Ferro and Colle del Puriac — historically used by pilgrims and seasonal migrants — become practicable again. The third Sunday of August brings the Fiera Occitana to the valley, a useful anchor for planning a late-summer visit. The Festa dei Santi Pietro e Paolo and the Festa del Benedetto Crocifisso are further dates in the local calendar. Winter brings heavy snowfall at these altitudes and access to outlying borgate may be restricted. Travellers exploring the upper Stura corridor may also wish to include Acceglio, a neighbouring mountain comune in the adjacent Valle Maira. Those arriving from the Langhe or southern Piedmont can use Montà as a staging point before heading into the mountain valleys.

Departure	Distance	Time
Cuneo	approx. 60 km	approx. 1 hour
Acceglio	approx. 15 km	approx. 20 min

These practical references help organise the journey clearly, while the village itself is best understood slowly and on foot once you arrive.