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00   Campo Ligure
Stemma di Campo Ligure

Liguria · Genova

Campo Ligure

A Spinola borgo in the Stura valley north of Genova, the last working centre for gold and silver filigree in Italy.

Best time
Apr–Oct
By train
Station in the comune
Population
2,777

Known for

  • FILIGRANA

    Gold and silver thread twisted with pliers called bruscelle and welded under torch, the first workshop opened 1884, the only surviving Italian centre.

  • SPINOLA CASTLE

    Hexagonal medieval fortress with a 22-metre cylindrical tower, residence of the Spinola counts who controlled the Stura valley trade route.

  • MUSEO DELLA FILIGRANA

    Founded 1984 around the Pietro Carlo Bosio collection, filigree pieces from across five continents in a single ground-floor exhibition.

When to visit

Best · Apr–Oct

  • J8°
  • F11°
  • M12°
  • A16°
  • M19°
  • J24°
  • J27°
  • A28°
  • S23°
  • O18°
  • N12°
  • D8°
  • Best
  • Hot or crowded
  • Quiet
  • Mostly closed

Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.

The festa: Maria Maddalena, 22 July

Why come

Campo Ligure sits on the right bank of the Stura, twenty-five kilometers north of Genoa where the Apennines start to climb. The Spinola family took the fief in the thirteenth century and built the hexagonal castle on the hill above the village; the cylindrical tower is more than twenty-two metres tall and six across. The first filigree workshop opened in 1884.

Within a generation Campo Ligure had become the national centre for the craft, fine gold and silver threads twisted with pliers called bruscelle and welded under a torch. It remains the only working filigree centre in Italy. The Museo della Filigrana, founded in 1984 around the Pietro Carlo Bosio collection, holds filigree work from across the world. A medieval stone bridge over the Stura, originally ninth-century and rebuilt several times from the eighteenth century onward, anchors the lower end of the borgo.

The Sunday letter

Campo Ligure is on our list. Its letter is still to come.

We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter every Sunday: the photo, the food, the festa. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Campo Ligure comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.

How to get there

From Genoa (GOA), about 36 minutes by car.

Turin (TRN) is about 2 hours away.

By car from the centre of Milan 1h 40m.

There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.

Coming from Genoa, Milan or Turin?

Coming by train into Genova Piazza Principe? Campo Ligure is about 40 minutes away by road.

Every town within reach of Genoa airport.

Campo Ligure, photo 1
Campo Ligure, photo 2

What to see

  • Castello Spinola

    Twelfth and thirteenth-century hexagonal fortress on the hill above the village, cylindrical tower 22 metres tall, residence of the Spinola fief.

  • Museo della Filigrana Pietro Carlo Bosio

    Founded 1984 around the Bosio collection, filigree work from across the world, the only museum of its kind in Italy.

  • Ponte medievale sullo Stura

    Stone bridge over the Stura with ninth-century origins, rebuilt several times from the eighteenth century, marks the southern entrance to the borgo.

  • Chiesa della Natività di Maria Santissima

    Eighteenth-century parish church in Baroque style on the main piazza, frescoes by Carlo Giuseppe Ratti, marble altar from Carrara.

  • Centro storico di Campo Ligure

    Tight grid of three parallel medieval streets along the river, filigree workshops still operating between residential houses.

The slow-trip planner

Building a trip? Find where Campo Ligure fits in a slow Italy circuit.

Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.

We recommend

Where to eat

Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.

Living here

  • Population 2,777
  • In-betweeni
  • Pharmacy in town
  • High school within a 30-minute drive
  • Train station in the comune
  • Nearest airport Genoa, 36 min drive
  • Regional capital Genova, 41 min drive

Common questions

What is Campo Ligure known for?
Campo Ligure is a Spinola borgo at 342 meters in the Stura valley north of Genova, the last working centre for gold and silver filigree in Italy.
Where is Campo Ligure?
Campo Ligure is a comune in the province of Genova, in Liguria.
What is the nearest airport to Campo Ligure?
Genoa (GOA), about 36 minutes by car.
Can you get to Campo Ligure without a car?
Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
How long is the drive from Milan to Campo Ligure?
About 1h 40m by car.
When is the best time to visit Campo Ligure?
Best in Apr–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 28 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 16 rain days.
Is there a sagra or a festival in Campo Ligure?
The town keeps its patron saint's day: Maria Maddalena, 22 July.
Which other towns are like Campo Ligure?
Murlo, Genga and Fossato di Vico.
How many people live in Campo Ligure?
2,777 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources

The numbers

  • Elevation: 342 m
  • Population: 2,777
  • Surface area: 23.74 km²

These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.

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