In the ancient core of Solcio, “a small village caressed by the warmest and most tranquil breezes, at the end of a small gulf, filled with beautiful houses, gardens and orchards”, as Boniforti poetically wrote in 1892, the Leber House stands out on the ancient Strada Regina, just behind the neoclassical Parish Church built to a design by Bartolomeo Franzosini.

It is a building with an articulated plan, dating back to the eighteenth century, as also evidenced by the date 1766 engraved on the keystone of the entrance portal.

The distinctive feature of the building, which has a terraced garden in front of it, is the pictorial decoration that frames almost all the openings, pretending to be cornices, parapets and mouldings of Baroque style: it is a unique case, on the Lago Maggiore, while it is not uncommon on Lake Orta and in the Ossola Valley. On the other hand, it should not be forgotten that the Lebers, two high-ranking officers in the Savoy army, were originally from Switzerland, where the tradition of painted facades was particularly strong.

This scenic inland villa, originally called "Bovera" after the stream that flows alongside it, has recently been attributed to architect Pietro Bottini, who built it for Commendatore Boschi between 1863 and 1866, while supervising the work on the adjacent Villa Sozzani, from the same period, easily recognizable by its neo-Castellane style. Commendatore Boschi's daughter, Luigia Boschi, married Gaspare Cavallini in 1848 who bought Villa Minetti in 1868, later called Villa Cavallini.

In 1906, the engineer Adriano Cuneo, the same engineer who designed the Tadini and Tassara villas, restored it to its current form.

Three stories above ground, sadly abandoned for many years, it stands on a panoramic terrace accessed by a double staircase from which, beyond the rooftops of the town of Lesa, one can enjoy a wide view of the lake.

The building, with its facades entirely painted with squares, garlands and floral decorations, features a classical design influenced by typical chalet motifs, such as the triangular pediment and the strong colouring of the façades, also recalled by the pillars of the entrance gate on the avenue aligned with the Sempione state road.
The compositional design, aligned along the avenue/villa axis, was almost immediately negated by the passage of the Simplon railway across the property, which crosses it orthogonally, interrupting the refined perspective of the villa's entrance. The long avenue, now Viale Riva, remains intact, unusual for the narrow confines of Lago. To the side of the villa, a magnolia tree, already noted by Boniforti in 1870, dominates it in size and grandeur.

Built in 1952-1953 to a design by architect Ignazio Gardella, this villa represents an unconventional example, for its time, of fluid architecture. The natural setting, represented by the slope towards the lake and the undulating terrain, combined with great design freedom, give life to a construction articulated on three different levels, harmonized by a large, flat roof that coordinates the movements of the rooms and landscapes.

The building's free-flowing layout and carefully calculated spatial layout contribute, through targeted orientations, to the surprising array of unexpected views of the lake. A set-back central body serves as a pivot and gives rise to two lateral volumes with clearly defined functions. To the right is the sleeping area on the first floor; to the left, on a staggered level, is the living area. From the large atrium, the gaze immediately extends beyond, toward the lake and the hills framed by the large French window at the rear.

The garden's layout was designed and curated by Ignazio Vigoni. The open view of the lake, bordered on either side by mature trees, was intentionally left unobstructed, creating a soft lawn that connects the levels and enhances the slope toward the lake.

The Villa plays a significant role in the evolution of the relevant building type, offering a progressive interpretation through experimentation and innovation of its distribution and functional characteristics.

The first traces of the Villa date back to the Theresian Land Registry of 1722, which lists a "house site" with surrounding land and vineyard, owned by the heirs of Don Bartolomeo Carbonara, of Genoese origin; Carbonara was a Colonel in the Spanish Army, Field Master, and Governor of Arona.

By 1807, the Villa was already a holiday residence for the noble Milanese Pirovano family, and was described as follows: "built in three adjoining buildings, one noble, the other rustic, and a gallery connecting them, and an Italian garden with a grand staircase leading down to the lake." In an 1816 engraving by Federico and Carolina LOSE, the villa was depicted as "Solcetto Pirovano"; and it is indeed Antonio Maria Pirovano who is responsible for the construction of "a convenient carriage drive leading directly to the Villa from Via Napoleonica del Sempione."

A few years later in 1822, Giovanni Antonio Pirovano sold the “Tenimento di Solcetto” to Bernardino Minetti; the Minettis were entrepreneurs in the crystal glass sector in Portovaltravaglia and Crevoladossola, they established their holiday home in Solcietto until 1868, the year in which, upon the death of the founder, the heirs sold the entire estate to Luigia Boschi, wife of the senator. Gaspare Cavallini.

Donna Luigia Boschi was already at home in Lesa, in fact her paternal family of Novara origins used to reside on holiday in Villa Bovera (now Villa Alice), she had married the Senator Gaspare Cavallini in 1848. The Cavallinis were a family of landowners from the Pavia area and owned large rice-growing estates in Lomellina. Gaspare, who graduated in law in Turin, was appointed Senator in 1873 and moved his state house and later his permanent residence to Villa a Solcio.

The Cavallinis had 3 children:

• Filippo, a lawyer and entrepreneur, followed his father's political career, which however took him far from the lake shores;

• Emilio, also a lawyer but dedicated to the management of the family's real estate assets, is responsible for the continuous improvements, renovations and expansions of the estate in Solcio, as well as the discovery of the Bognanco Springs;

• Adelaide – wife of Senator Piero Lucca – who donated the villa and the monumental park to the Municipality of Lesa, with the aim of establishing an “Agricultural School of Fruit and Flower Growing” there.

The villa comprises an architectural and landscape system overlooking the Piedmontese shore of Lake Maggiore. It comprises three buildings, the oldest of which dates back to the 18th century and is accessed from the lake via an imposing staircase that crosses the sloping, terraced "Italian garden," once dotted with gushing fountains.

It has a monumental park designed in the early 800th century in the shape of an "English garden", crossed by a wide tree-lined avenue suitable for carriages, which allowed carriages direct access from the Strada Napolenica del Sempione to the terraced level of the buildings.

The villa was home to an important breeding farm for "Italian Greyhounds." The breed was selected here and the breeding center was maintained until Adelaide's death. The flat garden behind the villa still houses the "greyhound cemetery," complete with gravestones describing the specimens that were selected here, born here, and lived under the watchful care of Emilio and Adelaide Cavallini.

Since 1944 the Villa and the Park have become – by generous will of Adelaide – the property of the Municipality of Lesa, with the indication of establishing there the headquarters of the “Emilio and Gaspare Cavallini.

Built in the late 19th century, this villa fully embodies all the elements of neoclassical architecture. The floor plan consists of a quadrangular body with a semicircular portico at the center of the lakeside elevation. The building rises three stories above ground, resting on the garden's ground level. The imposing façade and the gentle slope of the land in front contribute to the spectacular view of the building from the lake. The ground floor differs from the upper floors primarily in the presence of a semicircular portico, supported by columns with Ionic capitals, which marks the center of the tripartite façade. An elegant string course separates the ground floor from the first, where, aligned with the openings below, the windows that illuminate the interior are inserted. From this level, the façade's tripartite division is emphasized by the presence of fluted pilasters crowned by Ionic capitals. The horizontal bands are highlighted by elegant balustrades that run along the edges of the terrace covering the portico on the first floor and the balcony on the second floor. The cornice of the terraced roof is protected by another balustrade crowned by classical statues. Overall, the densely packed windows overlooking the terraces and balconies serve to fully enjoy the light and the view.

The two-story villa was built in the second half of the 800th century by the Davicini family, originally from Turin, bordering Villa Noseda. Designed by Defendente Vanini, in classic block style, it stands a short distance from the shore, facing it with a classically styled façade, characterized by windows with curved gables on the ground floor and rectilinear gables on the first floor.

It became the favorite residence of Carlo Davicini, a great benefactor of Lesa, to whom the Municipality dedicated a street that runs alongside his once vast property.

Within the park, accessed through an imposing gate overlooking the Sempione road, are other buildings, once used as a gatehouse and the farmers' residence, as well as stables. The garden, divided into areas for different purposes, has a more formal section behind the house, with groups of cypress trees that help frame the villa's architectural façade.

Villa Noseda stands outside the historic center of Lesa, on a broad strip of land extending downstream from the Simplon road, an ideal area for building holiday residences. The villa, which became the property of the Nosedas in 1871, was renovated by expanding an existing eighteenth-century building. The architect, Defendente Vanini, a highly active lakeside architect, was called upon for this work. He is credited with introducing the distinctive central attic motif on the lakeside façade.

In keeping with its antiquity, the villa features a symmetrical layout, both in its floor plan and its regular neoclassical facades, with rusticated corner elements, arches on the side wings, a central balcony on the first floor, and recessed lunettes above the windows. The villa stands alone in the midst of a vast, centuries-old park. A high stone wall, with a semicircular balustrade, frames the lakeside park, which features a significant number of plants arranged along the sides of the building to preserve the lake view.

Given its austere architecture yet veiled with a touch of romanticism, in 1974 it hosted some parts of the RAI drama “Malombra”, based on the novel by Fogazzaro, with Marina Malfatti and Giulio Bosetti.

Initially called Villa Ronchi, already existing in 1890, it must have been a three-storey building of no great architectural importance, with the two main facades facing respectively the road leading to the "Castellaccio" and towards the lake. Once owned by the Covi family, it was renovated inside and redesigned outside with a stylistically hybrid ornamental facing. A large Art Nouveau veranda was also added to the lakeside façade.

The three-story villa has a rectangular plan: the street-facing façade is graced by a continuous series of windows, while the lake-facing façade features the aforementioned veranda, topped by a very spacious terrace that extends over much of the first floor. The villa is set within a large, well-maintained park, filled with centuries-old trees.

Two moments in its long history.

From 34 to 37, it was home to Giulio Gatti-Casazza, a key figure in the historical development of opera production. He was, in fact, superintendent of La Scala (1898-1908) during the legendary years of Arturo Toscanini's artistic direction. Then, moving to New York with Toscanini, he became general director of the Metropolitan Opera until 1935, making it the largest and richest opera house in the world.

The great solitary navigator Giovanni Soldini, winner of the round-the-world race “Around Alone” in 1999, as a boy used to spend his holidays in the villa in Lesa, owned by his grandmother: on our lake Giovanni learned the first rudiments of sailing.

This unique villa, built in 1914/1915, stands within a park filled with prized trees, including camphor, cypress, Atlantic cedar, magnolia, and beech. Its architecture echoes the style of French chalets, yet blends seamlessly into its setting and the style of late 800th-century lakeside villas.

Its main features are the massive corner tower with its three-light windows and picturesque balconies, the balcony projecting from the portico, which offers a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape, the eaves cornice, supported by elaborate wooden lace brackets, and the steeply sloping roof covered in stone shingles. A caretaker's lodge overlooking the Simplon Pass is also attached to the main building.

Over the years, the property passed to the Diana, Buzzi and Tadini families and, for some time, was also used as a hotel, called “Hotel Primavera”.

In this villa, then called "Villa Piera" after his wife, Mario Tadini found safe refuge from the tragedies of World War II. Today, it has become a multi-family residence.

The dock

Built in 1912, it is now publicly owned but is part of the history of Villa Sourour. Characterized by a massive, solid-looking structure, it resembles a fortified building perched on the water's edge, composed of large stone ashlars and covered by a panoramic terrace accessed from the Wisteria Garden via a stone staircase.

Boats enter along the short north-facing side, through an arched entrance supported by flared columns with floral geometric capitals and a shaped keystone. Pedestrian access is provided by a lateral archway accessed via a buried staircase in the space between the dock and the street. The spacious interior features a perimeter balcony that served as a landing stage for boats, linear and without any parapet.

In 2023, based on a Technical and Economic Feasibility Study by the Municipality of Lesa, the Ministry of Cultural Heritage decided to launch a project to consolidate and restore the dock to its former state, restoring it to public use as a key element in the organic system comprising the Wisteria Garden, the dock, and the promenade towards Belgirate.

Built between 1863 and 1871 on the site of a pre-existing building, Villa Sozzani was built in the form of a castle, a typology already adopted in various buildings of the time, designed by Pietro Bottini, an architect very active on the Piedmontese side of the Lago Maggiore. The lack of respect for symmetry is therefore entirely justified, accentuated by the presence of an imposing lateral body that towers above the central one.

The project, following the fashions of the time, recreates romantic settings, imitating buildings constructed at different times. Full evidence that the construction is, instead, the fruit of a single project is evident from an analysis of all the architectural decorations adorning the building: the proportions of the openings; the moldings that run along the window profiles; the string courses; and the battlements that crown the entire perimeter of the building. Its large English-style park, filled with conifers, slopes gently toward the building and is bordered by the adjacent parks of Villa Conelli and Villa Alice. Noteworthy, in keeping with the Romantic taste of the time, is the surrounding wall located at the rear of the villa, constructed of stone and topped with Ghibelline battlements and a slender terracotta turret.

History

The villa, which now houses a prestigious restaurant and event and wedding venue, is located in the ancient hamlet of Villa Lesa, a charming hamlet in the municipality of Lesa. Together with the nearby Villa Aranci, Villa Conelli, and Villa Alice, it forms a significant landscape and naturalistic complex for the area.

Its history begins with a notarial deed transferring ownership of two rustic buildings from Dr. Luigi Prejalmini to Comm. Francesco Guglianetti, a member of the Parliament of the Kingdom of Italy and a member of the Board of Directors of the Northern Italy Railways. In 1871, the villa was rented to the Savio family. The transfers of ownership from the noble Savio di Bernstiel family to the Sozzani family and, subsequently, to the Tavella family are documented. However, due to the lack of documentation, it is difficult to fully reconstruct the changes of ownership and the works that transformed the villa.

The villa, located on the lakeside to the north, is now home to a bank.

Built in the late 18th century, it is a neoclassical building. The building originally had a U-shaped layout: the two side wings were demolished in 1806 to make way for the construction of the Simplon highway.

The elegant residence hosted Alessandro Manzoni for many seasons, who had married Teresa Borri, widow of StampaInside the palace, the Sala Manzoniana has been set up in memory of the illustrious figure, containing drawings, objects, and manuscripts that belonged to the writer and his friends who stayed there over the years.

Edited by Andrea Montano

In the last years of the 18th century the Lombard aristocracy had already discovered the lake Maggiore as a holiday resort away from the confusion of the cities, in an environment celebrated for its beauty by the first great Romantic travellers.

In the space of just over a century, the first luxurious manor houses, built next to the old villages and on family estates, were followed and flanked by equally, if not more, sumptuous buildings immersed and hidden in large English-style parks, and increasingly less linked to agricultural cultivation, from which they gradually reclaimed the land carefully preserved over the centuries for highly specialized and profitable agriculture.

The Counts' Villa Stampa, a wealthy Milanese family who had obtained their title in 1787, belongs to the first type: it stood right on the northern edge of the old town centre, directly overlooking the lake, right at the foot of the hill covered with orchards, vineyards and olive groves.

Shortly after its completion, the construction of the "stradone" (Napoleonic road, now the Simplon state road) led to the almost complete demolition of the side wings, bringing the neoclassical façade of the main building almost flush with the road. Beyond it, and below its level, remained the private dock, a reminder of the times when the lake was the common access route.

Today the building's external appearance is almost unchanged, but its current, rather inconvenient location—between the road, the railway, and the oldest part of the town—has prevented it from continuing to be a stately home, unlike other later villas that, magnificently isolated in their parks, have retained their patrician rank.

It currently houses apartments, offices, and the local headquarters of Banca Popolare di Novara. The interior, which has not been radically renovated, has retained its original structure, but appears more neglected than the exterior.

Behind the main building, in what was once the farmer's house, a Manzonian Room has been set up – which can be visited upon request – which contains various relics and mementos, as well as the reconstruction with the original furnishings of the study of Giulio Carcano, politician, playwright and translator of Shakespeare, friend and neighbor of the Manzonis, a regular visitor to the villa. Stampa.

Manzoni "spent several holidays" at his stepson Stefano's villa Stampa – a painter and pupil of D'Azeglio and Hayez – starting in 1839 and remaining there for a long time between 1848 and 1850, during a period when it would have been dangerous for him to return to Milan under Habsburg rule.

From Lesa he often traveled to Stresa to meet his friend and teacher Rosmini and other intellectuals who frequented the elderly philosopher-priest; these conversations are reported in Ruggero Bonghi's "Stresiane."

His favorite pastime, according to contemporary accounts, was sitting in front of his house watching the carriage traffic on the street; but two minor works date back to his period of exile in Lesa: the speech "Del romanzo storico" (On the Historical Novel) and the dialogue "Dell'invenzione" (On Invention). The latter, in particular, was entirely conceived and produced in Lesa, despite concerns about financial and family problems and the need to have all the documentation sent from Milan.

Taken from:

“Paths, History and Artistic Documents of the Novara Area

Ancient Towns Between the Lake and the Hills – Volume 22″

Province of Novara 200

This villa is located in the center of a large park, just beyond the parish church of San Martino, where the Lesa lakeside begins. Its prominent position offers a remarkable panoramic view from the Belgirate peak to the Ispra rocks and the Alpine foothills beyond.

It dates back to 1910 and was designed by the engineer Adriano Cuneo, who also designed Villa Alice and Villa Tassara, also in Lesa. Its layout is not dissimilar, at least in part, from that of the nearby Villa Sourour, but more recent in terms of its portico with an overhanging terrace and its massive corner tower, the top of which was added later.

One of the most striking features of this building is the presence of ornamental elements in neo-Gothic style, highly indicative of the eclectic and “revival” fashion that so influenced the villas on the lake towards the end of the nineteenth century.

The wrought iron entrance gate is highly worthy of note for its exquisite Art Nouveau design.

Built by the Tassara family, a dynasty of Ligurian steel industrialists, this 1899 villa stands out among the important villas of Lesa, especially for the surrounding park and its relationship with the park itself. Its environmental and landscape values ​​are fundamental in this regard.

Architecturally, Villa Tassara, designed by engineer Adriano Cuneo, has a rectangular plan with a two-story volume. A single-story wing, covered by a terrace, was added later, extending toward the uphill garden, overlooking the square of the church of San Martino.

Characteristic of the early years of our century are the decorative frescoes under the cornice and in a band below the two floors, as well as, moreover, the wrought iron, including the very elegant ones on the parapet of the small terrace at the top of the roof.

Inside the villa, noteworthy are the Art Nouveau stucco and fresco ceilings. The elegant ballroom, located in the annex, is also noteworthy.

In the grandiose park that climbs from the Sempione road towards the old town of Lesa there are other buildings such as the gatehouse, the old stables, now converted into living quarters, and a beautiful greenhouse.