The medieval village on the hill
In the Val d'Arda, in the hills south east of Piacenza, Castell'Arquato is one of the most beautiful medieval villages in Emilia, one of the "Borghi più belli d'Italia", built on a hill dominated by its fortress and climbed by steep cobbled lanes, stairways and houses of stone and brick. At the top of the village, the Piazza Monumentale is one of the most evocative medieval squares in Italy, on which three great buildings face each other: the Palazzo del Podestà, of 1293, with its battlements, its external staircase and its loggia; the Romanesque Collegiata di Santa Maria, with its apses overlooking the square and a beautiful cloister; and, a little further, the massive Rocca Viscontea, a fourteenth century fortress with a tall keep, which can be climbed for a view over the valley.
At the other end of the village rises the Torrione Farnese, a sixteenth century tower built as a fortified residence. Castell'Arquato is also known for its Museo Geologico, which displays the fossils found in the surrounding hills, once covered by the sea in the Pliocene: shells, corals and even the skeletons of whales and dolphins. Its charm has attracted many film directors, who have used it as a set for historical films. The surrounding hills are covered with vineyards producing the white Monterosso Val d'Arda and the red Gutturnio, and the village hosts medieval festivals and food fairs throughout the year.
Tip: park at the foot of the village and walk up; in the evening, the illuminated Piazza Monumentale is magical.
Where it is
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