Finalmarina

Not to be missed

Every June 29 the feast of St. Peter, patron saint of fishermen and sailors, is celebrated with bonfires on the beach and a grand procession. The heavy statue of the saint is carried on the shoulders and danced by fishermen, who go barefoot for the occasion and wear a cerulean-colored rough cloth habit. They arrive as far as the Blacks' beach and the Whites' beach for the Salutation to the Sea, but the most important moment is the return: weary from the long journey, the bearers race up the steps and down the central nave of the church as if in flight. The silence of the crowd is surreal. They will breathe a sigh of relief only when St. Peter has stopped in front of the altar and turned to look at them: if he is straight, proud and on axis, there will be a fishy year.

A bit of history

Several archaeological finds on the heights testify to the presence of Paleolithic hunters and gatherers, and ranchers and farmers in later eras. With the Roman conquest in 181 B.C., the first settlement was born facing the sea, on the present territory of Rione Marina. From the Middle Ages onward, Finalmarina came under the rule of the Del Carrettos, the Genoese (creators of the fortress of Castelfranco on the Gòttaro), the Spanish and again the Genoese. It was then annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia. In 1927 it was united with Marina, Borgo, Pia and Varigotti to form the municipality of Finale Ligure.

Curiosities

In the twentieth century Finalmarina was known as the City of Flight: Officine Piaggio, later Rinaldo Piaggio SpA, a leading manufacturer of large aircraft and important executive jets such as the legendary P180, was born and prospered here. The headquarters of the Piaggio Aereospace plants, this is the name of the company today, is located in Villanova d'Albenga. Piaggio in Finale Ligure was also responsible for the production of Rolls Royce Viper thrusters, used on the Italian Air Force's Frecce Tricolori. Since 2014, Piaggio's Finale plants have ceased production.