History of Ponte del Losco
We have a deep connection to the territory that surrounds us and its history. Our identity is shaped by the cultural, territorial, historical, and environmental features of these lands.
This is reflected in the name of our company and our wines, which explicitly recall the history of the territory where they originate.
PONTE DEL LOSCO AND DANTE
The farmland where our vineyards are located is near Ponte del Losco, a small bridge that divides the provinces of Modena and Bologna. It once served as a watershed between Lombard and Byzantine domains, and later between the Este States and the State of the Church.
Its name derives from Losco degli Aldighieri, a notary of the Nonantola Abbey, whose possessions included our farmland. The wife of Cacciaguida, the great-great-grandfather of the famous poet Dante and considered the progenitor of the Alighieris, belonged to the Aldighieri family.
In Dante's Paradiso, the poet meets Cacciaguida, who reveals to him the origin of his last name. This episode inspired the lunette of Palazzo Previdi in Nonantola, which depicts Dante, accompanied by Beatrice, and Cacciaguida pronouncing the words "And therefore your name was given".
PONTE DEL LOSCO: FRAGMENTS OF HISTORY ON THE BORDER
Marking the final border of the Lombard kingdom and separating it from Byzantine territories, the Ponte del Losco bridge has always represented a watershed between two cultures, two civilizations, two languages, and two worlds.
Significant events in local and national history have taken place on this border line. It was at this bridge that a carriage bound for Bologna, carrying stolen documents from the Abbey Archives, was stopped by Captain Caula of Nonantola. Additionally, it was on the Ponte del Losco bridge that Francis IV, Duke of Modena, was welcomed upon his return to his domains after the Congress of Vienna.
