Consonno, the City of Toys
An Italian count bought a whole mountain village, knocked most of it down, and began building a 'Las Vegas' of pleasure. Then a landslide cut it off.
What was reported
In 1962, a wealthy businessman, Count Mario Bagno, bought the small mountain village of Consonno, above Lake Como's southern end, almost entirely. He demolished most of the old houses and started building what he called the 'City of Toys': a pleasure resort with a pagoda, a Chinese-style gate, a fake medieval castle, a grand hotel, a dance hall and a minaret.
For a few years, it drew crowds. But in 1976 a landslide destroyed the only road, and the resort never recovered. Its strange buildings were left to decay on the empty hillside.
Explanations offered
Consonno was a business venture that failed. Its eerie mix of half-ruined fantasy buildings, with the minaret still standing above the trees, has made it a destination for photographers and explorers. Its church and a few original buildings survive.
- When
- Built in the 1960s; abandoned from 1976
- Where
- Consonno, Olginate, Lombardy, Italy
- Witnesses
- Visitors and former residents
- Status
- A real place
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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