Labirinto della Masone
Labirinto della Masone, Art museum in Fontanellato, Italy
The Labirinto della Masone spans across 17 acres featuring over 300,000 bamboo plants forming an intricate maze with paths reaching heights between 3 and 15 meters.
In 2015, publisher and art collector Franco Maria Ricci opened this cultural center after developing the concept through conversations with writer Jorge Luis Borges in the 1980s.
The museum houses a collection of 500 artworks spanning from the 16th to 20th centuries, including significant pieces like Francesco Hayez's Portrait of a Woman.
The facility maintains wheelchair accessibility throughout its premises and remains open every day except Tuesdays and major holidays like December 25 and January 1.
At the center of the eight-pointed star-shaped labyrinth stands a pyramid-shaped chapel, surrounded by arcades and exhibition halls displaying Ricci's typography collection.
Location: Fontanellato
Inception: May 29, 2015
Founders: Franco Maria Ricci
Creator: Franco Maria Ricci
Official opening: May 30, 2015
Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible
Website: https://labirintodifrancomariaricci.it/it/labirinto/homepage-labirinto
GPS coordinates: 44.85400,10.14643
Latest update: May 27, 2025 07:05
Labyrinths have been part of human architecture for thousands of years, serving religious, meditative, and decorative purposes. Chartres Cathedral preserves one of the most famous medieval floor mosaics in Europe, guiding pilgrims along a 13-meter-wide path made of blue and white stones. English castles like Hampton Court developed hedge mazes from the 16th century onward as part of their formal gardens, while Italian Renaissance villas integrated geometric stone patterns into their terraces. The collection also includes underground structures such as the Paris Catacombs, whose winding passages were originally quarries, or the Roman cisterns of Istanbul with their rows of columns. Each era and region developed its own techniques: medieval stonework in cathedrals, baroque garden architecture with trimmed hedges, or pre-Columbian temple complexes with ritual pathways. These sites document various construction methods, from laying colored stone mosaics to creating multi-level garden courses to constructing underground vaults. They offer insights into historical craftsmanship and the symbolic meaning of the labyrinth across different cultures.
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