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Fontainemore

Description

On the town's name there are uncertain convictions: for some historians it derives from the Franco-Provençal dialect and means "dark fountain", for others, from the Latin words "fons maurus" (source of the Moors) and this links the name to the legend of Saint Maur, who by miracle made a fountain appear in the village. The town's outskirts border with those of Biella, Lillianes and Issime and it is located in the Valle del Lys, in the most Eastern part of the Val d'Aosta, and features excursions of all levels of difficulty, such as the one between Hill of Barma at over 2200 meters above sea level to Col Gragliasca, to Mont Mars or to the Refuge Coda. Particularly suggestive is the gorge of Guillemore, a deep rift in the rock created by the waters of the river Lys.
The legend narrates that in 543, San Mauro, on his pilgrimage from Oropa, through the hill trail of the Barma, he stopped in the main square and with the only force of his praying, he gave birth to a water spring. The local inhabitants, on request of San Mauro, built here a chapel and entitled it to St. Anthony the Hermit in the VII century. The area was part of the lordship of the Vallaise and Fontainemore became the capital of the fief during the period between the XVII and XVIII centuries.

Not to miss:

The Parish Church of St. Anthony, built in 1494 on the right bank of the river Lys, is located in the village and has a carved wooden portal, divided into four panels depicting Saint Grato, St. Giocondo, St. Anthony and St. Orso. The presbytery dates from the XV century.
The medieval bridge over the river Lys, built around 1200, connects the village with the church of St. Anthony: It features a single solid arched nave, long 22 meters. With the stream nearby, it creates one of the most evocative glimpses of the entire region.
The Chapel dedicated to San Lorenzo in 1645 in the village Farettaz.
The Nature Reserve of Mont Mars, which consists of nearly 400 hectares, distributed between 1600 and 2600 meters and includes various lakes, such as the Lake of Vargno, and features forests, pastures, grasslands, many varieties of flora and fauna.
The Stones of Lys, a path-planning environment, which extends over an area of 4000 square meters. A walkthrough between large rocks, series of samples of minerals present in the Valle del Lys, accompanied by descriptions and news.
The Living Museum of the low mountain in Pra dou Sas, a village with buildings used as museums with tools of various trades on exhibition.

Map

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