Villa 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 village of Villa Rendena, with its hamlets of Javrè and Verdesina, is located at the southern opening of Val Rendena, where the San Valentino river flows into the Sarca. Like many Giudicarie villages, it was rebuilt after fierce fires destroyed the wooden superstructures of the huge Rendena houses at the beginning of the last century.
Villa Rendena’s past economic activity has involved traditional craft activities. A famous example was the craft manufacture of wooden clogs, which peaked during the Second World War. Javrè also had a state school of lace and crochet, merged with an ancient family business that had been highly regarded. Alongside these craft and industrial activities, however, ran a solid forestry and pastoral economy. This is confirmed by the many mountain huts dotting the slopes of the San Valentino valleywhich, with the waterfalls formed by the Rio Bedù, forms one of the most scenic “gateways” of the Adamello Trentino and the Adamello-Brenta park. The deepest part of the valley is where three high side valleys converge: the Vallina, Valletta Alta, and Val Dossà. The latter of these hosts the Dosson bivouac, a spartan shelter at 2300 m, below the Vacche pass, which offers access to the wild Val di Daone.
Points of interest
Pafsang Chapel, Villa RendenaChapel of Our Lady of Grace is situated on a small, grassy plateau known as “Pafsang”. Built in the 18th century, it took on its current form in 1844. The main facade is covered by a fresco depicting the Sacred Heart of Christ and the Virgin Mary in prayer. On the exterior side walls, there are images of various saints.
Church of San Valentino, JavrèDating back to the 1300s and situated on a spectacular hill at the mouth of the San Valentino valley overlooking the villages of Villa Rendena and Javrè, this church is dedicated to St. Valentine (martyred when Claudius was emperor of Rome). Simone II decorated the ribbed dome of the apse with images of the Blessing of Christ, the Annunciation, the Scholars of the Church, and the Evangelists, the latter of which are found in a curious picture painted like open skies, where the figures are floating in the air. Completing the decorations, the walls of the presbytery were frescoed in 1539 (during the same period as the frescoes of Pinzolo’s Church of San Vigilio) with scenes from the life of St. Valentine with related captions in order for the faithful to better understand his life, but these were regrettably partially damaged when they were painted over.
Church of Santa Maria Assunta, JavrèThis church dates all the way back to the 11th century, but numerous additions and expansions over the centuries (especially from the 16th to the 19th centuries) have completely altered its original form. The bell tower is the only element that has maintained its original Romanesque form. In the lunettes of the presbytery, it features images of the Birth of the Virgin Mary, the Presentation in the Temple, the Annunciation, the Birth of Christ, the Adoration of the Shepherds, the Adoration of the Magi, and the majestic fresco of the Crucifixion by Simone II Baschenis on the back wall of the apse.
