Lavatoio di Malesco

About the museum

The wash house of Malesco stands in the Piazza della Chiesa, behind the oratory of San Bernardino da Siena, in a rectangular building roofed with piode, the typical stone slabs of the Val Vigezzo. It was built by the Comune in 1895, on the occasion of the first major aqueduct that brought water to the village. Inside are eight large granite basins, arranged in two rows, 40 cm deep and with a total capacity of 444 litres, which allowed many washerwomen to work at the same time. For this reason the wash house was also an important meeting place for the community.

Fully restored in 2002 and no longer used for its original purpose, since 2007 it has hosted a thematic panel exhibition on the life and achievements of Giovan Maria Salati, a native of Malesco, considered the first man to have swum across the English Channel, in 1817. The wash house is one of the places of the Ecomuseo della pietra ollare e degli scalpellini di Malesco.

Highlights

• Eight granite basins from 1895
• Roof of piode, the typical stone slabs of the Val Vigezzo
• Exhibition on Giovan Maria Salati, the first to swim the Channel (1817)

Permanent exhibition

• Giovan Maria Salati, primo uomo a nuoto sulla Manica – Thematic panel exhibition on the life and achievements of the swimmer from Malesco who crossed the English Channel in 1817.

Founded

2007

Operated by

Ecomuseo di Malesco

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