Contrabbando "Frontiera dalle uova d'oro"

The latest work by the writer and historian Andrea Paganini, produced in collaboration with the Research Institute for Graubünden Culture, offers a comprehensive insight into the history of the border and smuggling in Valposchiavo and Valtellina from 1800 to 1950. The book analyzes the history of the Italian-Swiss border between Valtellina and Val Poschiavo, highlighting the phenomenon of smuggling, which has represented a strategy of survival and enrichment for centuries, profoundly influencing the identity of the people who live in these areas. Borders are not only lines of separation, but also spaces for meeting and economic, social and cultural exchange. During times of crisis, particularly during the Second World War, smuggling was mixed with the expatriation of fugitives seeking asylum and with struggles for freedom. The project of the Graubünden Cultural Research Institute, entitled 'The Frontier with the Golden Eggs', focuses on the period between 1800 and 1950, drawing mainly on sources never explored before, and highlights the protagonists of cross-border dynamics. Not only does it tell the story of the Alpine border valleys as important crossroads for the traffic of goods, but it also becomes the spokesperson for the extraordinary human events that historiography often tends to forget.

Mirella Carbone (Catania, 1967) is an Italian art historian, researcher and curator living in Switzerland, known for her interdisciplinary studies ranging from literature to art history and local history of the Canton of Graubünden.

Andrea Paganini (Poschiavo, 26 January 1974) is a Swiss historian, researcher and writer of Italian language, known for his studies on border literature and the history of Italian Graubünden during the twentieth century. His figure is central to the rediscovery of important cultural exchanges between Italy and Switzerland during the years of the Second World War.

An aperitif will follow.