Marano sul Panaro

Marano lies on the left bank of the Panaro, on the first hills of the Modena country. The arms are taken from a valuation book of 1720 and carry a chestnut tree and a vine, which is what the land gives, with the shield of the House of Savoy in the chief; in the square, instead, stands an oak, which the village has taken as its emblem. In the province Marano is known for its cherries and for poultry farming. The Colombarone was the seat of the Montecuccoli, the feudal lords; the Fornacione, with its tall chimney, still draws the skyline of the village; and in the old Montecuccoli mill are the civic museum of ecology and natural history and the museum of energies.

Between 8 September 1943 and 25 April 1945 the war passed through here and left marks and memorial stones, for soldiers and for civilians. On 12 April 1945 an Allied aircraft bombed Festà, a hamlet of the comune: it had taken the bell tower for an enemy watchtower. At Ospitaletto a memorial park recalls the massacre, and nearby are the bombi, emissions of liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons that come out of the ground. Part of the territory lies in the regional park of the Sassi di Roccamalatina, and at Festà there is a wildlife park among the calanchi.