San Giovanni

S. Giovanni is a seasonal settlement, mainly inhabited from May until the beginning of winer. It has some typical features of the settlement built at the same elevation: a compact town planning, buildings with shared walls and passages. Besides stables and barns there are wooden walkways used as drying areas. The huge church of John the Baptist dominates the settlement. 

Santa Maria di Perlungo

The settlement of Santa Maria Perlungo developed parallel to contour lines. Oddly enough, the settlement is quite distant from its church. The settlement can be reached thanks to a short dirt road that ends on the Eastern side of the settlement. A long cobblestone path then leads to the network of lanes connecting the buildings. Here we encounter several typical features, such as courtyards, portals, wooden walkways, covered passages. In the wide area dedicated to pastures in the town of Montagna in Valtellina, the recent history of the settlements mostly depended on the existence of roads suitable for vehicles: settlements reached by roads have better preserved buildings, although often deeply renovated. The hardest to reach areas are intact, but completely abandoned. In Santa Maria the accessibility combined with mild renovations that haven't distorted the original appearance of the settlement.