by Federica Lassi
Stone, wooden gates, meadows and not a soul. This is how the village of Mandonico appears to the eyes of hikers who, crossing the Sentiero del Viandante, find it before them. A compact agglomeration of rustic buildings, almost as if it were on the defensive, ready to parry the blows of some outsider who had come from afar in an attempt to take possession of it. And indeed, what is now considered the old nucleus of Dorio was chosen by the ancient peoples precisely to protect themselves from war attacks, looting and raids, being in a position perched between the Valle di Dorio and the Valle dei Mulini. History says that the first settlements of the Ligurians and, soon after, the Celts arose here, as evidenced by a number of axes dating back to the Bronze Age, which have been found and are now preserved in Como, as well as numerous erratic boulders with chapels, evidence of religious rites. Not isolated expressions of devotion: also standing out, a little apart from the rest of the village, is the small church of San Giorgio, dating back to the 15th century and for a long time the parish church, from 1506 to 1787, in front of which there is a balcony overlooking the lake, complete with a bench to enjoy a little and take a rest. The most precious jewel of the religious building is the late Gothic fresco dating back to 1422 depicting the exploits of the saint to whom it is dedicated, occupying almost the entire north wall of the nave, divided into six panels distributed over two bands: in one of the larger ones, St. George riding a white horse while piercing the dragon stands out. There is also a depiction of the Virgin Enthroned with Child and the Archangel Michael, as well as St. Anthony Abbot, a bishop identified as St. Gotthard and the Madonna Enthroned with Child on her lap.
Continuing to skirt the thick stone buildings, adorned with external stairways that once served to reach the upper floors, makes the mind gallop beyond the walls of decisive volumes, helping it to imagine life inside as it must have once been: on the ground floor rooms with hearths, on the higher levels spaces for sleeping or for drying and storing cereals and chestnuts. A slow daily routine, punctuated by the rhythms of nature, an element that dominates in this setting of slopes and paths, from which one can glimpse the changing hues of the lake, depending on the climate. It should not have been so different from the landscape admired by those who once inhabited the area, capable of providing indelible views by perfectly interweaving human traces and those of Creation. Looking at it now, it becomes difficult to think of it as teeming with life, a life that has been missing for over a century, when the last family left Mandonico. The passage of time has put the little hamlet on hold, gradually shifting interests and daily life to the current settlement, close to the lake. A past, however, that does not seem to have been put to a definitive end, thanks to its strategic location, this time for reasons related to outdoor tourism, and the recent renovations that are affecting some of the village's houses, all second homes. Here and there, in fact, anthropic signs emerge, indicators of how Mandonico has no intention of dying out definitively, let alone remaining a snapshot of times gone by.
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