The name, tradition says, comes from Mortis Ara, the altar of the dead: on 12 October 773, somewhere around here, Charlemagne's army and Desiderius's Lombards slaughtered each other. It must have felt heavy to carry, because Gian Galeazzo Visconti let the town change it to Beldiporto — and Beldiporto it stayed until 1402.
The coat of arms, though, shows a mortar, which has nothing to do with death: it is simply a pun on the name. In 1707 Victor Amadeus II made Mortara a royal city and the capital of the Lomellina, a role it held until 1860. Today it is known above all for its IGP goose salami; there are 15,156 residents.
Risotto alla Milanese
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Next up: Saint Lawrence and Saint Veneranda, patrons of the town of the Palio, Tuesday 10 August
Nearest airport: Milano Malpensa, 42 km away
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📅 Every year, on 10 August; the Palio Città di Mortara is run the last Sunday of September
Mortara celebrates Saint Lawrence the Martyr and Saint Veneranda on 10 August; on the last Sunday of September, the Palio Città di Mortara is run, with the court of Ludovico il Moro and six districts competing in the Game of the Goose in Piazza Silvabella, alongside the Goose Salami Festival.
Straight-line distances from the town centre. Tap a point to open its page.
The closest destinations covered by our editors, with straight-line distance.
Outside Mortara, but an easy day trip away.
