Buttigliera was founded in 1263-69 by the commune of Asti. Enjoying the rights of citizens of Asti, the people of the village had a good measure of administrative and judicial autonomy for many years. In the sixteenth century life here was thrown into chaos by the plague and above all the wars between the French and Spanish which bloodied Piedmont until 1559, when the lands under Asti passed to Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy. When the wars ended Buttigliera once more began to thrive, and farming and trade took off.

Buttigliera has two outlying hamlets: Serra and Crivelle. In Serra the distinguished Turin geologist Bartolomeo Gastaldi (1818-79), discovered a number of molars and part of the pelvis of a huge elephant. And it is still possible to find fossils of seashells, as the soil is of marine origin, dating back to the Pliocene period. Crivelle takes its name from the Crivelli family, rich local landowners (16th – 17th century).

Some of the illustrious figures born in Buttigliera include: Giovanni Nevizzano (1540), jurist and lecturer at the University of Turin, who wrote Sylva Nuptialis (1516) and other important judicial works - Francesco Nevizzano (1586), poet and author of the vulgar Illiad, a translation of the first five books of Homer’s work – and Paolo Pasta (1630), professor of canonical law at the University of Turin, then senator and estate lawyer in the court for extraordinary income.

EVENTS

During August is the Festa di San Bernardo and in Crivelle, the Festa di San Grato. In September the Festa di San Grato is put on in Serra. After the religious part of the ceremonies the village comes alive with music and dancing. Food-related events are a must, an opportunity to experience a world of authentic flavours and simple traditions.