Quaràntoli (''Quaréntul'' in mirandolese dialect) is a frazione of Mirandola, in the province of Modena. It is about 5 km from Mirandola and 35 km from the provincial capital.

History

In a document signed in Pavia on 24 June 904, King

Berengar I Berengar I ( la, Berengarius, Perngarius; it, Berengario; – 7 April 924) was the king of Italy from 887. He was Holy Roman Emperor between 915 and his death in 924. He is usually known as Berengar of Friuli, since he ruled the March of Friu ...

, through the intercession of Bishop Peter of

Reggio Emilia Reggio nell'Emilia ( egl, Rèz; la, Regium Lepidi), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has abou ...

, donated some goods in loco qui dicitur Quarantula''' to the Church of

Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...

. On 31 March 1198 the 'Manfredo's sons' and the citizens of the '' oppidum'' and '' castrum'' of Quarantoli took the oath of citizenship to the municipality of Reggio Emilia. On 15 April 1221, Cardinal Ugolino d'Ostia (the future pope Gregory IX) invested Ildeprandino de Pizo with the fief of Quarantoli: this legate was later confirmed by the papal bull of 9 June 1221 issued by Pope Honorius III. In 1227 the fiefdom passed to Bernardino, nephew of Guido Padella, while the investiture of Giovanni di Azzolino Manfredi dates back to December 1251. In August 1311,

Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII (German: ''Heinrich''; c. 1273 – 24 August 1313),Kleinhenz, pg. 494 also known as Henry of Luxembourg, was Count of Luxembourg, King of Germany (or '' Rex Romanorum'') from 1308 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1312. He was the first empe ...

recognised the dominion of the Pico family over Quarantoli and San Possidonio, which were under the jurisdiction of Reggio Emilia from 1315 to 1322. The decline of Quarantoli began in 1440-1470, when the Pico family obtained the papal institution of the parish of Mirandola and decided to build the new cathedral of St Mary in the 'new borgo' of Mirandola. Like the whole of the Modenese lowlands and surrounding areas, Quarantoli was also badly hit by the

2012 Emilia earthquake In May 2012, two major earthquakes struck Northern Italy, causing 27 deaths and widespread damage. The events are known in Italy as the 2012 Emilia earthquakes, because they mainly affected the Emilia region. The first earthquake, registering ma ...

. The greatest damage was recorded in the Romanesque parish church and in the historic rural buildings (cottages and barns).

Monuments and places of interest

In the western part of the village stands the Parish of Our Lady of the Snows, whose existence has been documented since 1044 and whose importance was comparable to the

abbey of Nonantola Nonantola Abbey, dedicated to Saint Sylvester, is a former a Benedictine monastery and ''prelature nullius'' in the commune of Nonantola, c. 10 km north-east of Modena, in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy. The abbey church remains as a basi ...

. In the 12th century the church was rebuilt by Matilde di Canossa (the date of its consecration on 15 November 1114 is carved on the altar). It was restored in the 15th century and the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

façade was built in 1670. In 1915, the church was enlarged. The medieval

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...

is decorated with Romanesque marble sculptures attributed to the circle of

Wiligelmo Wiligelmo (also known as Wiligelmus, Gulielmo da Modena, Cousin of Elmo or Guglielmo da Modena) was an Italian sculptor active between c. 1099 and 1120. He was the first sculptor in Italy to produce large-format sculptures and sign his work. Wil ...

(author of Modena Cathedral). The church was severely damaged in 2012 after the Emilia earthquake. Leaving the village in the direction of Gavello and the Mirandola valleys, once reached the railway subway, there is a modest house with a niche in the place of a window housing a so-called 'street crucifix', known as the Quarantoli Christ. This is a devotional terracotta work made to scale in the 19th century, according to the ancient rural tradition that the cross and the image of Christ should keep evil away.

Economy

The main activity is agriculture. The main products are apples, including

Campanino Campanino ( it, mela campanina; in the Emilian dialect Mirandolese , ), also known as , , or , , is a variety of the domestic apple. Thanks to its long shelf life, the has been popular not only in Italy but also in export to countries such as ...

(Bell apples), pears, fodder, sugar beets, maize and wheat, but also watermelons and melons in the valleys.

References

Bibliography

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History

Monuments and places of interest

Economy

References

Bibliography

See also