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All Italy 'La Via delle Pietre'

'La Via delle Pietre'

Musings of an artist carved into a rural stonewall.

Albino, Italy

Added By
Max Cortesi
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‘La Via delle Pietre’   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
‘La Via delle Pietre’   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
‘La Via delle Pietre’   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
Waves, eyes, birds, fossils … whatever you think you see, there’s so much more to it.   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
In the foreground, a cross turns into an anchor, without which, humans would be condemned to drift   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
Section of the wall   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
The mundane existence of a ladybird mingles with the mythological world of the Egyptian scarab, and the dots hide some obscure cosmological truth.   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
The executioner, whose nose is an axe blade, lost his job following the invention of the guillotine, but he rejoices at the chance of wielding his axe again.   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
Those with a scientific bend may be able to discern the presence of an important formula on this rock.   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
‘La Via delle Pietre’   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
‘La Via delle Pietre’   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
In memory of a lost friend - where light, the known, meets the darkness, the unknowable, yet waves spring from both sides.   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
Lost in the stones is also the artist’s signature - the artist’s first name, Remo, means oar.   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
Section of the wall   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
A pointy-nosed fish and a pair of pouting lips sum up an epiphany of the existentialist type   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
Section of the wall   Max Cortesi / Atlas Obscura User
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About

"La Via delle Pietre" ("The Path of Stones") is located along a country road at the base of Monte Cereto, in the village of Albino. It is around 114 feet (35 meters) long and consists of more than 1,000 carved stones. This is the creation of a local artist named Remo Ponti, who can often be found on-site creating new artwork.

Ponti was a metalworker by training and profession, but his true calling was art. In 2014, he decided to turn a rural stone wall into a work of art, and it took him six years to complete.

The themes of these carved stones are as varied as they can be—animals, faces, everyday objects, geometric patterns, and abstract compositions. As Ponti unravels the symbolism behind each stone, it becomes clear that these stones are the repository of his life experience, emotions, and philosophy. 

A wide face on a stone may represent the executioner who lost his job following the invention of the guillotine, but he rejoices at the occasional chance of wielding his axe again. On another stone is the wing of a butterfly, with a minuscule stylized human figure on the side, representing the artist facing the beauty and complexity of the natural world, and ultimately, the universe. Contemplating the variety of themes on the wall is as gratifying as learning about their hidden meaning. Ponti manufactured all the different chisels and hammers that he used to create his art.

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Max Cortesi

Published

September 19, 2023

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'La Via delle Pietre'
Via Piazzo
Albino, 24021
Italy
45.758687, 9.781446
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