The route of the core zone “Monferrato of Infernot” The infernot is a not essential addendum of the cellar but very useful to guard and preserve wine after bottling. It consists of a small chamber dug below ground, without direct air and light, which is located alongside or under the cellar but in direct contact with it. Etymologically linkable to the old Provençal enfernet, designating a narrow prison, and early applied, as it seems obvious, to a narrow space, underground, main cellar’s outbuilding, the word "infernotto", with semantics oscillation, will also arrive to designate the greater room. Infernot are under private homes in most of the municipalities of Casale hills, but above all where there’s the “pietra da cantoni” ("stone for cantoni"). The Monferrato Casalese territory is characterized by its geologic history; there are rocks of the Miocene period such as the “pietra da cantoni”, a marly-calcareous or siliceous-calcareous sandstone, whose origin can be attributed to ancient sedimentary deposits, characteristic of shallow marine environments. The stone, geologically known as sandstone, by all improperly called "tuff", is very suitable for the excavation and creation of infernot because it is quite workable and ensures constant and fit climate and humidity for storage of bottled wine. The preparation of infernot was with two well distinct operations. Excavation was by the same owner of home, retrieving the room, which often expanded beyond the limits of the property, invading the space underneath the public street, public square and other people’s properties. Then, a “pietra da cantoni” quarryman, more specialized, finished the work odeling from solid, as far as the compactness of the stone allowed him, stone steps, niches, shelves for bottles. (taken from the publication "Infernot – forms and expressions carved into the “pietra da cantoni", realized by the Ecomuseum of “Pietra da Cantoni” – Regione Piemonte) Table n. 1 landscape route km. development in the area of excellence "Monferrato of Infernot" with "Post Stations of the Landscape ". Altitude Partial Progressive (m distances distances (Km) s.l.m.) (Km) Vignale M.to - P.zza Italia 259 0,00 Vignale M.to - Belvedere Melvin Jones 281 0,35 0,35 Vignale M.to - Chiesa S. Bartolomeo 315 0,50 0,15 Camagna - Sacrario banda Lenti 244 3,95 3,45 Camagna - P.zza Lenti 254 4,60 0,65 Camagna - Chiesa S. Eusebio 265 4,90 0,30 S.P. Casale Altavilla 138 8,75 3,85 Frassinello - Via Cavour 217 10,80 2,05 Frassinello - Chiesa S. Bernardo 204 12,65 1,85 Rosignano M.to - V.le Repubblica Madonna dell'Assalto 244 19,05 5,15 Rosignano M.to - Via Bonelli Belvedere 271 19,45 0,40 Ozzano M.to - Chiesa S. Salvatore 234 23,90 4,45 Ozzano M.to - belvedere cimitero 265 24,65 0,75 Cella Monte - Chiesa romanica S. Quirico 257 28,30 0,65 Sala - Via Roma 228 33,85 4,45 Sala - Chiesa S. Grato 255 34,70 0,85 Ottiglio - P.zza Filippini 220 37,55 0,90 Ottiglio - Fraz. Moleto Chiesetta romanica 241 41,80 3,00 Olivola - P.zza Europa 269 44,65 0,85 Olivola - Chiesa S. Pietro 256 45,35 0,70 Frassinello 236 47,35 2,00 Vignale M.to - P.zza Italia 259 51,40 2,45 Table n. 2 landscape-route profile of Basso Monferr 350 300 250 315 259 281 200 Quote (m s.l.m.) Altimetry Profile of the route 150 244 254 265 100 ato. 50 217 271 0 204 244 Vignale M.to - P.zza Italia - Km 0,00 138 Vignale M.to - Belvedere M. Jones - Km 0,35 265 283 234 Vignale M.to - Chiesa S. Bartolomeo - Km 0,50 154 Camagna - Sacrario banda Lenti - Km 3,95 257 Camagna - P.zza Lenti - Km 4,60 Camagna - Chiesa S. Eusebio - Km 4,90 294 S.P. Casale Altavilla - Km 8,75 255 228 Frassinello - Via Cavour - Km 10,80 Frassinello - Chiesa S. Bernardo - Km 12,65 179 279 Str. Comunale per Rosignano - Km 13,90 Rosignano M.to - Madonna dell'Assalto - Km 19,05 220 279 Rosignano M.to - Via Bonelli Belvedere - Km 19,45 241 Ozzano M.to - Chiesa S. Salvatore - Km 23,90 Ozzano M.to - belvedere cimitero - Km 24,65 269 235 Fraz. Monti di Cella Monte - Km 27,65 256 Cella Monte - Chiesa romanica S. Quirico - Km 28,30 bivio per Sala - Km 29,40 236 259 Sala - Via Roma - Km 33,85 Sala - Chiesa S. Grato - Km 34,70 bivio per Ottiglio - Km 36,65 Ottiglio - P.zza Filippini - Km 37,55 158 Bivio Prera - Km 38,80 Ottiglio - Fraz. Moleto Chiesetta romanica - Km 41,80 Bivio Prera - Km 43,05 Bivio Olivola - Km 43,80 Olivola - P.zza Europa - Km 44,65 Olivola - Chiesa S. Pietro - Km 45,35 Frassinello - Km 47,35 Bivio S.P. - Km 48,95 Vignale M.to - P.zza Italia - Km 51,40 1. morphological and agronomic aspects This area includes the municipalities of Vignale Monferrato, Camagna, Frassinello, Olivola, Cella Monte, Sala Monferrato, Ottiglio, Rosignano and Ozzano Monferrato. The area consists of the Central Monferrato hills and, marginally, of the river Po, (North-East), which progressively decrease proceeding Eastward towards the river Po, which is the Northern and Eastern boundary toward its confluence with the river Tanaro - whose ancient alluvial terraces border Southward. Under the geological profile – during the formation of the Piemontese Tertiary Basin and its subsequent raising – we can find calcareous-clay natural substrates in different colours according to different periods. In some areas even oldest lithological layers emerge, belonging to 15-20 million years ago, forming the so- called "pietra da cantoni", a widely used material for building at local level. Modeling made by erosion on this ancient surface, raised from the depths of sea, is affected by the different composition of deposits, derived from sedimentation in more or less deep waters. The richest deposits of silts and clays have smoother shapes, gradients and differences in level are less relevant, while where coarser grain sizes (sand) predominate the height rises in steep slopes that develop on higher differences in level. This morphological distinction shows itself even in the use of soil that is mainly agricultural (corn, wheat, vineyards and arboriculture for wood) in the first case, and becomes predominantly forest in the second. Relating to the composition of woods in addition to the common matrix of robinia (locust-tree) in expansion either on ex farming or after repeated coppicing, there are chestnut coppice in regress with oaks (farnia, durmast, downy oak and, sometimes, cerro). Often oaks also dominate in the plain of the coppice. In particular in cooler impluvium stations persist the querco-hornbeam, typical of plain horizon, while in the South-facing slopes it prevails the orno-downy oak wood, often in the manna-ash pioneer variant. The settlement system in Monferrato is predominantly of height, but connected to the two main traffic routes of the area: the way of the valley bottom that runs through the Valcerrina and the transverse crossing axis to Asti-Moncalvo. Casale – Monferrato historical capital - appears relatively external, perhaps because put only in the 15 th century among centres of gravitation of the Marquises Paleologi’s Court. In the area in the Southeast of city, the settlement system is on the contrary strongly structured on the roads group that put in communication with Valenza Po passing by Frassineto-Valmacca, Borgo San Martino, Occimiano and Mirabello, and on San Salvatore Monferrato node that connects Casale to Alessandria. The plain nature of the area and its agricultural vocation, however, have favoured the development of a dense network of roads in depth in the settlement. Inside Monferrato, more generally, we can identify structural elements that have their distinctive features. Minor watercourses, right tributaries of the Po river, that flows in theWest-East direction, are surrounded by between-hills valley bottoms, where dry farming prevails with dominant cereals, poplar-trees and meadows. These are truffles high attitude areas; in particular, to signal the Stura of Monferrato, which flows in val Cerrina, subparallel to Po river, before its confluence at Pontestura. Going east the hills lower and become progressively thin, separated from plains of the Tanaro, in the South and of the Po river, in the East, by residual portions of ancient terraces that descend towards the plain with steep slopes. In the Northeast the Po plain widens, characterized by rice use. 2. cultural-historical characters There are two Roman roads: the first ran parallel to the course of the river Po and touched the settlements of Camino, Pontestura, and Casale (Vardacate), to go on in the direction of Valenza (Valentia) and Bassignana, important river crossings. The second is the path to Moncalvo and Pontestura, part of the road that from Asti led to Vercelli. In medieval and modern age a new transverse axis which linked Casale with the Alto Monferrato and crossed the river Tanaro at Felizzano acquired progressive importance. It is to be stressed how the area corresponds to the core, survived independent until the Treaty of Utrecht (1713), of the Marquisate (later Duchy) of Monferrato, and how, then, it presents cultural features which left evident traces in art and architecture. The general settlement features are deeply different between the hilly area and the one next to the course of the river Po. In the first case the settlement is centralized, of hill or ridge; only in the course of 1800-1900, with the gradual spread of the railway network, the first commercial settlements appeared in the bottom of the valley, collection points of growing and vine.