Vigo Rendena is part of the municipality of Porte di Rendena, established on 1 January 2016 by the merger of the municipalities of Villa Rendena, Darè and Vigo Rendena.
The community of Vigo Rendena (from the Latin “vicus” - village) is particularly proud of its name and its origins. Etymological and historical indicators suggest that it dates back to the time of the first human settlements in the valley: it can be traced back as a fixed and autonomous entity to the Gallic era, around the 4th century BC. The historian Tacitus wrote in the 1st century A.D. that the small human settlements surveyed in these Alpine areas were still “pagus” in 100 B.C. and later converged into more organised “vicus” centres.
As regards information on the existence and regulations of the community of Vigo, the historical archival material yields scrolls that deal with the distribution of the territory with the nearby communities of Pelugo, Javrè and Darè. The oldest document is dated 1384 and relates to boundary lines (crosses carved on large rocks). The history of the village has been a succession of political and administrative unions and separations with Darè and Javrè.
As regards the village economy, construction has expanded significantly since the Second World War; there is also an important craft furniture business specialising in sofas, armchairs and living room furnishings.
Points of interest
Chapel of the Four Faces, Vigo RendenaTradition has it that the Capitello delle Quattro Facce (Chapel of the Four Faces) was erected in 1348 and then expanded in 1630. In 1882, it was skilfully frescoed by Valentino Pupin, an artist from Schio, with a series of inscriptions dedicated to the community and images depicting St. Vigilius and St. Lawrence (south recess), Our Lady of the Rosary with St. Catherine and St. Dominic (north recess), St. Sebastian and St. Roch (east recess), and St. Valentine (west recess). The chapel speaks of the darkest times in the history of the people of the Rendena valley, namely those of the great plagues of 1347- 1352 (the Black Plague), 1576-1577 (the Plague of St. Charles) and 1629- 1633 (the Italian Plague), as well as the cholera epidemic of 1836-1837.
Lourdes Grotto, Vigo RendenaThis small sanctuary in the Fisaröl area of upper Vigo Rendena was erected in 1959 on the initiative of the parish priest of Vigo Rendena and Darè, Father Rinaldo Binelli, and the contributions of the people of Vigo and Darè. A faithful recreation of the Lourdes grotto, the sanctuary features statues of the Virgin Mary and of St. Bernadette (by Ermanno Moroder, a sculptor from Ortisei).
