What is Sasso Marconi known for?

The radio pioneer carried out his first long-distance wireless experiment in the attic of Villa Griffone in 1895; the town was renamed in his honor in 1938. Città del Tartufo and Città del Vino, with white truffle from the Reno valley and hillside vineyards around Mongardino and Pieve del Pino. Pliocene rock formation at the confluence of the Setta and Reno, the geological landmark that gave the town its name.

Where is Sasso Marconi?

Sasso Marconi is a comune in the province of Bologna, Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, about 19 kilometers from Bologna.

Emilia-Romagna · Bologna

Sasso Marconi

A 128-meter pre-Apennine town renamed in 1938 for Marconi, with Villa Griffone holding his tomb and the attic where he first sent radio in 1895.

19 km / 12 mi

Nearest hub (Bologna)

14,747

Population

Apr–Oct

Best time to visit

Recognised as

Why come

Sasso Marconi sitson the confluence of the Setta and Reno rivers, fifteen kilometers south of Bologna at the gateway to the Apennines. The town takes its name from the Sasso della Glosina, a Pliocene rock formation that dominates the river bend, and from Guglielmo Marconi, the radio pioneer whose family villa is in the frazione of Pontecchio. Known as Sasso Bolognese until 1938, the town was renamed in his honor. Villa Griffone, the Marconi family estate, is where Guglielmo carried out the first successful long-distance wireless signal in 1895, sending a transmission over the Celestine Hill at the age of twenty-one; the villa now holds his mausoleum, opened in 1941, and the Museo Marconi, with working reproductions of his early apparatus. The territory of Sasso Marconi reaches up the Apennine slopes and carries both Città del Vino and Città del Tartufo recognition, with the white truffle of the Reno valley and the hillside vineyards around Pieve del Pino and Mongardino.

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Gallery

4 photos · scroll →

Known for

Villa Griffone - Museo Marconi
Marconi family villa in the frazione of Pontecchio, with his mausoleum opened in 1941 and the attic laboratory where he sent his first wireless signal in 1895.
Sasso della Glosina
Pliocene-era rock formation on the confluence of the Setta and Reno rivers, the geological feature that gave the town its name.
Confluenza Setta-Reno
Meeting of the two valleys at the foot of the Sasso, with the historic crossing of the Via Porrettana toward Pistoia.
Chiesa di Sant'Antonio Pontecchio
Parish church next to Villa Griffone, with the family chapel of the Marconi household.
Contrafforte Pliocenico nature reserve
Protected ridge of Pliocene-era marine sandstone running along the Sasso Marconi territory, with hiking trails through chestnut and oak woods.

When to visit

Best months · Apr–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

April through October is the working season in Sasso Marconi. Spring and early autumn are best on the Reno valley trails and at Villa Griffone, with mild temperatures and the Apennine foothills green or autumn-coloured. July and August can touch thirty-five degrees in the valley, though the higher frazioni stay cooler; many visitors come up from Bologna for a day on a weekend. The Tartufesta runs through October and into November, when the white truffle of the Reno valley reaches the markets. November through March is quiet, with the Museo Marconi open by appointment and most hillside trattorie closed Monday to Wednesday. The Calice di Stelle wine event in mid-August brings tastings to the hilltop frazioni.