5 parish churches along the Via Francigena in Lunigiana

This church, like many local parish churches, is Lombard and Tuscan. It tells the story of the encounter between lands and cultures. From here, we travel towards the Abbey of Linari and Emilia, along an important road connecting with the Via Francigena.

In the past, the Parish Church of Codiponte was a crossing point: a bridge was built in the Middle Ages which gave the place its name, Capite Pontis.The parish church and the castle are closely linked to the road network, since before the time of the Romans. Capodimonte was also the central baptismal church of a large territory that almost reached from the Apennines to the Apuan Alps.

The Parish Church of San Paolo di Vendaso was an important mountain church for medieval travellers. The peace that can be found there is the very essence of the Romanesque, the style that, along the Via Francigena, unified Europe.

The Parish Church of Offiano is set in a charming setting in a plain surrounded by the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines and the Apuan Alps. On the facade, there's a white tile that portrays a pilgrim with his saddlebag, enabling us to understand the importance of the place as a point of mediation along the Via del Volto Santo towards the Hospice of San Nicolao di Teo.

The Parish Church or Pieve di Santo Stefano in Sorano is a jewel of Romanesque art in Lunigiana dating back to the 11th century. Its massive stone façade makes it unmistakable.

It is probable that another early medieval church (8th–9th century) stood on this site before the present parish church. The epigraph known as that of Leodegar (752 CE), now preserved in the Church of San Giorgio in Filattiera, may derive from this earlier church. Sigeric, the archbishop of Canterbury, also mentions it in the late 10th century when he passed through this locality on his return journey from Rome.

Extensive restoration work completed in 2000 brought back its original appearance.