Monterosso al Mare
Fourteen-meter concrete and iron Neptune, war-damaged and missing his trident, arms and shell.
Location
About this audio guide
This guide to Monterosso al Mare's Neptune statue, Il Gigante, in Cinque Terre traces the giant's origin in 1910, commissioned by a couple who'd made a fortune in Argentina and built by a Ferrara sculptor and an engineer as a swaggering ornament for their villa above Fegina beach. It describes how the statue's giant shell doubled as a terrace where locals say people once danced above the waves. The Second World War turned that villa into a command post, standing right above where you are now.
This audio guide was created using AI.
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