Balôn
The Balôn is the flea market of Borgo Dora, the oldest district of Aurora, right by Porta Palazzo; the City of Turin calls it «Turin's most popular flea market».[1] It is held every Saturday and, in the form of the Gran Balôn devoted to antiques, on the second Sunday of every month.[2][3]
The name
The origin of the name is uncertain: the most widespread explanation links it to the game of pallone, since in the early 17th century an «osteria del pallone» (inn of the pallone) is documented between Porta Palazzo and the Dora, and the district was known as «Borgo del pallone».[4] Around 1740 Pietro Domenico Olivero painted «Il gioco del pallone a Torino», probably set in Porta Palazzo; in Craveri's 1753 guidebook the nickname refers to games in general.[4] The district grew up around workshops on a canal drawn from the Dora: the Molassi were medieval mills, and two late-17th-century silk mills are considered the first industries of the Savoy State.[1]
History of the market
The market was officially founded on 1 July 1856, when the industrialist Liautaud donated a small trapezoidal plot at the corner of present-day Via Lanino and Via Cottolengo; the traders' association, however, dates its presence «from 1857».[5][6] Nearby stands the Church of San Gioacchino, which replaced the old parish church of the Balôn, dedicated to Saints Simon and Jude.[1] Photographs of the market in the 1960s by Franco Ordasso are held in the City's Historical Archive.[7]
Saturday
The Saturday Balôn is open from 7am to 6pm along Via Borgo Dora, Via Cottolengo, Via Lanino, Via Mameli and in the Cortile del Maglio, with about three hundred stallholders, both professional and amateur, craftsmen and creative workers, plus around fifty shops open from Tuesday to Saturday; it is run by the Associazione commercianti Balôn.[6][8]
The Gran Balôn
The Gran Balôn, the City's themed antiques market, has existed since 1985 and is held on the second Sunday of every month, featuring antiques, vintage items, collectibles, books and period clothing; in 2025 Circoscrizione 7 celebrated its fortieth anniversary.[3][9][2] On Sunday 4 October 2026 Borgo Dora will host the fifth Festa del Balon, with music, talks, exhibitions and the opening of the historic shops.[10]
Sources
- Circoscrizione 7, Città di Torino
- Città di Torino, Commercio — 14 February 2024
- Circoscrizione 7, Città di Torino — 7 November 2025
- MuseoTorino
- Circoscrizione 7, Città di Torino
- Associazione Balon
- MuseoTorino
- Associazione Balon
- Associazione Balon —
- Torino Oggi — 1 October 2026