Piemonte, continued

Late in the day, after the workmen had gone home for the day, we explored a monastery that was being restored. The sun was near the horizon, the light was golden. We could see the peaks of the Swiss Alps to the north, and the vineyards below were a blanket of autumn reds, oranges and golds.


A huge tower soars above us at the monastery


Everywhere we went in Italy, we saw iron shafts mounted at an angle to the exterior of buildings, sort of like decorative windshield wipers. Above the archway on the left of this picture, you can see one.


A closeup of one of the iron bars, with the brickwork crumbling away. It's evident that the bar is not merely decoration; it's afixed to a horizontal, rebar-like rod that serves to reinforce the structure.

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