Marnate's Bunker

Marnate's Bunker is an underground fortification next to the Valmorea railway line, stretching about 143 meters with roughly 2 meters of height and 2 meters of width. The structure is made of poured concrete with narrow corridors that cut deep into the earth.

A German general ordered construction of the bunker in summer 1944 to store gold-bearing material from mining operations before it could be transported across the border. Resistance fighters took control of the facility in spring 1945.

The exterior walls carry commemorative graffiti showing resistance fighters and a historic newspaper announcing the birth of the Italian Republic. These visual marks show how locals have claimed the place as a monument to their own story.

The entrance sits in a residential area and is reachable on foot, though the terrain is uneven in places. The municipality manages the site and it is open to visitors after basic safety work was completed.

Inside the bunker, resistance fighters discovered a hidden self-destruction mechanism that had to be disarmed. This concealed explosive device reveals how desperate the occupiers' situation had become by 1945.

Location: Marnate

GPS coordinates: 45.63495,8.89587

Latest update: December 20, 2025 14:11