The thousand-year-old highway
The Via Marenca is a route that connected Piedmont, France and the northern regions with the coast, allowing people to move and trade, primarily salt. A stretch of great strategic importance connected the villages of the Impero, Maro and Prelà valleys, reaching Oneglia, the landing point of merchant ships even before th construction of its port in the XIX century. Here sections of the path are still clearly visible, delimited by dry stone walls that acted as both a boundary between properties and as deterrents, preventing mules and other pack animals from browsing in the lands next to the street.
Fonte: La Via Marenca, Giampiero Laiolo, Associazione Comuni dei Lascaris, 2001 Grafiche Amadeo
Testo a cura di Nicola Ferrarese, immagini di Nicola Ferrarese