Nestled in the greenery of the Alto Monferrato, the village rises around the imposing mass of its medieval castle, which still dominates and protects the settlement and preserves its ancient entrance gates.
Standing on a rugged hill at 450 meters above sea level, the fortress is the highest in all of Monferrato. Built by Tommaso Malaspina towards the end of the 13th century on the ruins of an earlier tower, the castle was conceived as a strategic lookout point. Its irregular layout, towers, and triple ring of walls underline its defensive role. To this day, visitors must cross a drawbridge and walk through narrow medieval alleys before facing the final steep ascent to the castle. Despite centuries of changing ownership, the stronghold has retained much of its appearance, particularly that shaped between the 15th and 16th centuries, and it survives in an excellent state of preservation. Now privately owned, it is permanently inhabited by its custodian, who has undertaken meticulous restoration works and opened it to the public through the Castelli Aperti circuit.
Among the religious sites, the ancient Church of San Biagio – likely built before 1400 – the rural Church of Madonna degli Angeli, and the Romanesque Church of Sant’Agata, perched in a panoramic position, stand out. The original parish church may have been located within the castle walls, though its exact site is uncertain. The present parish church, built on the foundations of a structure dating back to around 1440 and later modified, was rebuilt entirely in 1870; it retains the earlier bell tower, which was raised by 15 meters.
Just outside the village, along the road to Molare, lies the Sanctuary of the Brucetta, founded in the 9th century. It houses and venerates an image of the Virgin painted on stone, which miraculously survived a fire caused by one of the many Saracen raids that struck the area.
The miraculous preservation was seen as a divine sign, leading the local population to immediately rebuild the sanctuary, which has since become a destination for pilgrimages.
