Liguria · Imperia
Perinaldo
A ridge village at 572 meters above the Val Nervia, birthplace of Giovanni Domenico Cassini and home to a working astronomical observatory in his name.
Known for
CASSINI
Giovanni Domenico Cassini, born here in 1625, mapped four moons of Saturn and gave his name to the Cassini Division in its rings.
OSSERVATORIO
Working municipal astronomical observatory in the town hall, with regular evening sessions and a dedicated educational program.
OLIO TAGGIASCO
Taggiasca olive oil from the terraces below the ridge, the basis for the Città dell'Olio membership.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Why come
Perinaldo sits at 572 meters on a ridge above the Val Nervia, seven kilometers inland from Bordighera and the French border. The village is the birthplace of Giovanni Domenico Cassini, born in 1625 in the castle and christened in the parish Chiesa di San Nicola da Bari. Cassini left for Bologna and then for the court of Louis XIV in Paris, where he directed the new Royal Observatory, mapped four moons of Saturn, and gave his name to the gap in its rings.
He sent a canvas back to the Suffragio altar of the parish church in 1672. The Osservatorio Astronomico Comunale G. D.
Cassini, housed in the town hall with a dome in its courtyard, runs observation evenings and educational programs. The Sundial of the Chiesa della Visitazione marks the meridian Cassini's calculations helped fix. The terraces below grow Taggiasca olives. Perinaldo holds Borghi più belli, Bandiera Arancione, and Città dell'Olio.
The Sunday letter
We haven’t written Perinaldo’s letter yet.
One town every Sunday, with the photo, the food, the festa. Be there when this one comes up. Free, by Peter & Sophia from Pietrasanta.
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What to see
Osservatorio Astronomico G. D. Cassini
Working municipal observatory inside the town hall, with a dome in the inner courtyard and observation evenings for visitors.
Chiesa di San Nicola da Bari
Parish church built in 1489, where Cassini was christened in 1625, holding a fifteenth-century wooden crucifix and a canvas Cassini donated in 1672.
Chiesa della Visitazione
Smaller church on the ridge, fitted with a meridian sundial calibrated using the astronomical methods Cassini helped develop.
Castello dei Conti Maraldi
Old village castle, birthplace of Cassini, the heart of the medieval centro storico arranged in concentric rings on the ridge.
Belvedere
Ridge viewpoint with sightlines down the Val Nervia to the sea and north into the Alpi Liguri toward Mount Toraggio.
The slow-trip planner
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Living here
- Population 829
- In-betweeni
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Genoa, 2 h 7 min drive
- Regional capital Genova, 2 h 12 min drive
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
The numbers
- Elevation: 572 m
- Population: 829
- Surface area: 20.3 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories — ISTAT, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata — and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
Close by
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