The settlement began as a Roman mansion along the Via Julia Augusta. Slowly expanding, it became, in medieval times, a fief of the Clavesana marquis, who was a subject of the Republic of Genoa, to which Cervo had always been faithful. The present character of Cervo dates from these times: 16th-century towers and ramparts still protect the village. One of its main attractions is the fine baroque church of St. John the Baptist, overlooking the sea. The Romanesque Oratorio di Santa Caterina contain 18th-century frescoes. The medieval Clavesana stronghold hosts the Ethnographic Museum of Western Liguria and the Palazzo Viale-Citati.
Source: Wikipedia
