Abbey of Acqualunga

The Abbey of Acqualunga, located in the municipality of Frascarolo in the western part of Lomellina, at the border with the Alessandria region of Piedmont, in a territory linked to the presence of the Po River, takes its name from an old Po channel called Acqua Lunga.

The municipality of Frascarolo is documented as early as the High Middle Ages, but a settlement probably existed in Roman times, as evidenced by numerous archaeological finds. The first documents mentioning Frascarolo date back before the year 1000, when the village, like much of Lomellina, was part of the Lomello county.

Founded in 1180 by the Cistercian monks of Rivalta Scrivia, from the La Ferté line of Burgundy, it is still governed by the Bishop of Vigevano as its Abbot. The complex still preserves the 12th/13th-century monastic church, along with the monastery and the abbey palace, which was renovated in the 16th century by Abbot Galeazzo Pietra (later the first Bishop of Vigevano), a Ducal Senator and Secretary to Cardinal Ascanio Sforza in Rome. The agricultural structures from the 18th-19th century have also been preserved.

It is possible to visit the church by appointment with the ecclesiastical property.

Photo:  https://www.lomellinaterradiriso.org