Medieval Day at the Abbey

A dive into 15th-century Piedmont

The Medieval Day at the Abbey is one of the most evocative events in the cultural calendar of San Nazzaro Sesia, a small town in the Province of Novara, in the heart of the Piedmontese rice-growing plains. For an entire day, the Abbey of Santi Nazario e Celso travels back in time, filling with re-enactors in historical costumes, camps, workshops, and merchants, carefully reconstructing the daily life of Piedmont at the beginning of the 15th century.

The abbey hosting the festival

The heart of the event is the Benedictine abbey complex, founded around 1040 near a ford of the Sesia river, along the ancient Via Regia. Surrounded by a massive wall with circular corner towers, the abbey preserves a tall Romanesque bell tower, a Lombard Gothic-style church, and a refined cloister decorated with 15th-century frescoes dedicated to the Stories of Saint Benedict. Under Abbot Antonio Barbavara (1429-1467), it became the abbey with the highest income in all of Piedmont: an authentic and perfect setting for a medieval re-enactment.

Crafts, merchants, and daily life

The day is designed to provide an up-close look at life six centuries ago. Within the abbey walls, ancient crafts and activities of the past come to life:

• leatherworking and the art of embroidery
• medieval cuisine and period flavors
• stalls of merchants and artisans
• the art of weaponry with historical combat groups
• demonstrations of military life, music, and folk dances

The re-enactment features historical associations and groups from Piedmont, Lombardy, and Liguria, who animate the spaces with live demonstrations and spectacular moments.

Guided tours of the complex

Throughout the day, the Piemonte Medievale association offers guided tours dedicated to the architectural wonders of the abbey: the 12th-century atrium, the 15th-century frescoes of the cloister, and the monastic rooms, explained within their historical context. A precious opportunity to discover one of the most important monuments in the Novara area, often little known to the general public.

A free event for the whole family

Organized by the parish of Santi Nazario e Celso together with the Piemonte Medievale association, Gens Turris, and the Madonna della Fontana Committee, the Medieval Day at the Abbey offers free admission and is aimed at families, history enthusiasts, and the curious. It is the ideal occasion to spend a different kind of day in San Nazzaro Sesia, amidst culture, tradition, and the atmosphere of times past.