Passing through the ruins of the monastic living quarters, with their empty windows opening onto the surrounding vegetation, we arrive at the remains of the cloister.
Before us lie the ruins of the ancient cloister. Today, the entire structure is reduced to a few traces, but those traces still speak. The only surviving element is the low perimeter wall, the same wall that once supported the regular row of paired columns defining the portico. Imagine those delicate arches, the play of light and shadow, the slow steps of the monks who found here a place of silence, meditation, and prayer. The cloister was the intimate heart of monastic life: a passageway between the abbey’s spaces, but also a space of quiet and contemplation.
Looking within the perimeter, one can notice small, more recent walls, irregular in appearance. These are the remains of structures built by shepherds between the 16th and 17th centuries, when the abbey, no longer inhabited by monks, was used as a rural shelter. These small walls served to create pens and shelters for flocks. It is a precious testimony of a different phase in the complex’s history: perhaps less solemn, but no less lively and tangible.
Here concludes our journey through the stories and transformations of the Argentella Abbey. Thank you for accompanying us this far and for dedicating your time to these places rich in memory. We hope this visit has sparked your curiosity, emotions, and a fresh perspective on this corner of the landscape. We wish you a good day, and see you soon!
