The ovens in the villages of many municipalities in the Aosta Valley will light up on 12 October 2024 to bake the traditional black bread on the occasion of the "Lo Pan Ner" festival.

Ovens and black bread
Many Aosta Valley villages have at least one community oven, where in the past families used to take turns baking rye bread for their personal consumption, usually once a year, at the beginning of winter.

Simple bread, made with slightly leavened wheat and rye, good for feeding families isolated for many months through the winter season. Chestnuts, cumin, and dried fruit would sometimes be added to the traditional rye flour bread.

When eaten fresh, it has a delicious fragrance, but in the past it was preserved on special wooden racks, known as “Ratelë”, for several months. A special tool was needed to break this bread, a sort of guillotine called “copapan” still in use today. The preserved bread had to be dipped in broth, warm milk, or sauce from meat cooked for a long time. Like many traditional Aosta Valley dishes, it was treated to have a long shelf life.

Some ovens have been restored and are still in use today: an opportunity for local social gatherings and handing down local traditions.
All the ovens of the participating towns and villages are geolocated on the event website.