Busano: Ricetto, Churches and Canavese Traditions

Busano brings together architectural history, religious art and a weekly market with a cycling route through several types of landscape.

The Ricetto and early architectural history

In 1019, an important Benedictine convent was founded in Busano. Another historic building is the Torre del Ricetto, the entrance tower to the Ricetto. It was built of rubble stone; the corner stones are comparatively carefully worked. The building material and the treatment of the building’s corners thus stand out as distinct architectural features.

The former passageway through the Torre del Ricetto was equipped with a drawbridge. This detail adds the tower’s historic access function to the description of its masonry: its construction history includes both the stones used and a former structural feature.

Churches: Romanesque forms and imagery

The Romanesque part of Busano’s parish church was built between 1035 and 1040. Its main apse is crowned by six blind arches. Blind arches are arch-shaped features that divide a wall without forming an open passage. The six arches thus provide a specific architectural detail on the apse. The Romanesque apses are at the rear of the church; this orientation helps locate the features described.

The furnishings in the Chiesa della SS. Trinità repeatedly refer to the symbolism of the Trinity. The banner of the Bovari depicts the town’s Madonna, Saint Isidore and Saint Thomas. The two churches therefore differ in their cultural and historical emphasis as described here: the parish church focuses on Romanesque architectural features, while the Chiesa della SS. Trinità highlights religious symbolism and the figures on the banner.

Weekly market and event dates

Busano’s weekly market takes place on Mondays from 08:00 to 13:00 in Piazza San Tommaso and Via Igonetti. You can therefore include Monday as a possible market day in your travel plans. Temporary changes are possible; if you plan to visit the market, check the latest information from the municipality before your trip.

The Festa Patronale Natività Maria S.S. is listed for the second weekend in September. If the festival is a deciding factor for your travel dates, confirm the current year’s programme locally. On 28 June 2025, “Marciar e Mengiàr” was also held for the eighth time: a nighttime culinary walk through Busano’s historic courtyards, where traditional Canavese dishes were sampled. For a possible future edition, confirm the date and programme locally.

Cycle through different types of landscape

The “CORIO Anello Alto Canavese Morena Ovest” cycling route passes through Busano. It takes in the foothills of the Alto Canavese, the plain and the western start of the moraine of the Ivrea Moraine Amphitheatre. The cycling route therefore focuses on the landscape, while the Ricetto and churches bring architectural and art history to the fore. These different highlights can help you plan your stay according to whether you are more interested in historic buildings, the weekly market or the cycling route.

Discover more destinations: San Raffaele, Pont Canavese, Pinerolo, Sangano, Balangero, Torre Canavese, Front, Torrazza Piemonte.

For the main travel overview: Turin.