At the foot of the hills of Casola, surrounded by a 70-hectare park with century-old trees, trails and cultivated areas, the Alfredo Oriani House Museum, called Il Cardello, stands on the remains of the medieval guesthouse of the Valsenio Abbey.
The building was purchased in 1855 by Luigi Oriani, Alfredo’s father, who moved in with his family. In 1926 the house was completely restored in the Neo-Romanesque style popular at the time, without much regard for the original structures, resulting in a residence with simple forms that still hints at its historic past. The house was transformed into a classic late-19th-century Romagna residence, with locally crafted furniture, including the writer’s kitchen and study, which houses his private library of 500 volumes. The loggia preserves the Oriani archive.
In the large attic, visitors can see the bicycle with which, in 1897, Alfredo Oriani undertook a long solo journey across Romagna and Tuscany, starting from Il Cardello, which inspired his book La bicicletta, published in 1902. Oriani is often considered the pioneer of cycle tourism, one of the first to undertake a nearly thousand-kilometre journey across the Apennines, through rural landscapes, towns and historic sites.
"Although I had descended from Casola at almost thirty kilometres per hour, I was not tired: the day had been beautiful, and the sun had finally burned away inside my head the cold shadow of a sleepless night." Alfredo Oriani, La bicicletta, p. 52
At the rear of the building stands the writer’s mausoleum, built in 1924 by architect Giulio Ulisse Arata, against a backdrop of cypress trees.
Walking through the large park, visitors can follow a botanical path among holm oaks, firs, pines, cypresses, oaks and cedars, discovering monumental trees and the landscape of the Senio Valley. A short trail connects Il Cardello to the Herb Garden.
Il Cardello is part of the Case Museo dei Poeti e degli Scrittori di Romagna and Case e studi delle persone illustri dell'Emilia-Romagna circuits.
April 1 – June 30: Saturdays 3:00 PM–5:00 PM, Sundays and holidays 2:30 PM–7:00 PM
July 1 – September 30: Saturdays 4:00 PM–6:00 PM, Sundays and holidays 2:30 PM–7:00 PM
October 1 – 27: Saturdays 3:00 PM–5:00 PM, Sundays 2:30 PM–5:30 PM
