Colonna dell'Ospitalità

In the square of Bertinoro, in front of the Palazzo Comunale, there stands a stone column with twelve iron rings. This is the Colonna dell'Ospitalità, also known as the Colonna delle Anella, and it is the symbol of the town. Tradition dates it back to the early 13th century, to the time of Guido del Duca, the nobleman whom Dante meets in Purgatory.

The story goes like this: the noble families of Bertinoro used to quarrel over the honour of hosting strangers who arrived in town. To make peace, they had the column erected and each family fixed its own ring to it: the traveller would tie his horse to one of the rings, and the family of that ring would host him, free of charge.

Dante recalls the generosity of the people of Bertinoro in the 14th canto of Purgatory. The column you see today has been rebuilt over the centuries, but the ritual lives on: every year, on the first Sunday of September, the Festa dell'Ospitalità repeats the draw and the families of the town welcome visitors.

The column stands in the square, always visible and free to see. From here, streets climb up towards the Rocca and the Museo Interreligioso, and the square's terrace is the ideal spot to gaze out over the plain as far as the sea.