Arco di San Rocco and gates of the town

In the second half of the 12th century, the town of Pedona decided to establish itself as an autonomous municipality, changing its name to Borgo San Dalmazzo. It was at this time that the urban centre was fortified thanks to a system of walls that opened outwards with several gates: the Nice Gate facing the Gesso and Vermenagna valleys, the Porta dell’Abbazia near the abbey church, the Porta di San Bernardo (or di quinto) facing the Stura valley and the Porta di San Rocco which opened in the direction of Cuneo.
The arch of San Rocco is the only surviving gate of the four that in the Middle Ages regulated the passage of people entering and leaving the village. As mentioned, the gate dates back to the second half of the sixteenth century. The element of artistic interest of the gate is the medallion placed on the top of the arch in which the original coat of arms of the Municipality of Borgo San Dalmazzo is reproduced: the Saint in Theban legionnaire clothes on horseback holds a weathercock with a white flag and red cross in the middle; in the background a hilly landscape refers to the geographical features of the area where Borgo San Dalmazzo stands. On either side of the medallion two winged dragons could refer to ancient textual traditions linked to San Dalmazzo, in which he mentions his coming to Pedona to free the town infested by these creatures, which are symbolically traced by some whose hypothetical coming is however connected by the 10th century historiography, and therefore about six centuries after the presumed life of the Saint. This decoration is recent but wholly depicts the town’s coat of arms painted in tempera on canvas and kept at the Council Chamber of the Town Hall.