Castello Tesino
Castello Tesino is the most populous municipality and the reference center of the Tesino Plateau, the vast basin between 800 and 9...
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Η ιστορία του/της Castello Tesino
Castello Tesino on the Tesino Plateau
Castello Tesino stands at 871 meters above sea level on the slopes of Mount Picosta, in the heart of the Tesino Plateau, the wide basin between 800 and 900 meters that opens onto the left side of the eastern Valsugana, in the province of Trento, a few kilometers from the border with Veneto. With over a hundred square kilometers of surface area, it is the largest and most populous municipality of the three that make up the Conca del Tesino, together with Pieve Tesino and Cinte Tesino: distinct administrative realities but united by a shared history, landscape and culture. The inhabited center developed around the hill of Sant'Ippolito, the site of an ancient Rhaetian settlement and then an outpost along the Roman Via Claudia Augusta, while its hamlets, including Lissa, Molini and Roa, extend to Val Vanoi. For centuries a land of transhumant shepherds and then itinerant merchants, the plateau has maintained a strong identity, visible today both in the historical heritage of the town and in the woods and pastures that surround it.
The "perteghieri": from flint to prints
The identity of Castello Tesino is linked to the figure of the "perteghiere", the traveling salesman who from the 17th century to the early 20th century traveled the roads of Europe, from Spain to Russia, reaching as far as the Americas and North Africa. Itinerant trade began when, with the reduction of available pastures, the inhabitants of the plateau sought new sources of livelihood: it was in Castello Tesino that the Gallo brothers started a flint extraction business for arquebuses, the first engine of an economy based on travel and door-to-door sales. Over time, trade shifted from flint to popular prints, initially produced by the Remondini factory in Bassano del Grappa and later made by the Tesini themselves, who went on to open about sixty shops across the continent. World War I, with the closure of borders, marked the decline of this era, of which widespread memory remains in the homes, surnames, and traditions of the plateau.
The Cave of Castello Tesino and the Karst of the Plateau
The territory of Castello Tesino encompasses one of the most significant karst phenomena in Trentino. To the north of the plateau, the insoluble granite rocks of Cima d'Asta dominate, where karst is almost absent, while to the south, carbonate rocks prevail, giving rise to dozens of surface and underground karst forms: sinkholes, swallow holes, and over fifty caves, concentrated between Monte Agaro, Monte Mezza, and Celado. The most famous is the Cave of Castello Tesino, discovered in September 1927 by surveyor Bortolo Da Rugna on the right bank of the Senaiga stream, at an altitude of 960 meters: it is the only cave in Trentino equipped for tourist visits, with a path of about 450 meters through galleries rich in stalactites, stalagmites, columns, and concretions. Inside flows the Torrente Ignoto, an underground watercourse with impressive flows after rain, and lives the Niphargus galvagnii, a small cave-dwelling crustacean known so far only in this cave. Visits, guided and by reservation, reveal one of the most unique natural environments in Trentino.
Pastures, Alpine Huts, and the Landscape of Lagorai
The municipal territory of Castello Tesino extends from the valley floor meadows to the northern spurs of the Lagorai, culminating in the majestic Cima d'Asta, which reaches almost 2,850 meters and dominates the plateau with its alpine lakes and the refuge of the same name. Along the slope leading to Passo Brocon, a historic pass and today a ski resort served by Funivie Lagorai, there are fir and larch forests alternating with pastures and mountain huts, many still active in summer dairy production using traditional methods. The famous Tròdo dei fiori winds through these parts, a botanical trail that in a few kilometers crosses over three hundred species of alpine flowers with views of the Dolomites, while the Tròdo delle malghe connects in a loop the active and abandoned huts of the Celado plateau, which also houses a small astronomical observatory. The La Cascatella Park, with its natural pools near the village, offers a more accessible taste of this nature, ideal before or after a hike towards the high altitudes of the Lagorai.
History, art and traditions of the village
The historic center of Castello Tesino preserves a rich heritage for a mountain village. On Sant'Ippolito hill, where archaeological excavations between 1977 and 1979 brought to light Rhaetian artifacts from the Iron Age, stands the church of Saints Ippolito and Cassiano, dating back to 1436, with a cycle of 15th-century frescoes, while the church of San Giorgio, dedicated to the patron saint depicted as a knight defeating a dragon, is now the parish church. In the 17th-century Palazzo Gallo, which belonged to the family that promoted the trade of the 'perteghieri' (itinerant merchants), the Wood Museum is housed, dedicated to tools for forest work related to pastoralism and itinerant trade; just outside the village, the Roman bridge over the Guernana stream remains. Every five years, during Carnival, the village relives the Biagio delle Castellare, a re-enactment of the 1365 revolt against Count Biagio, with a procession, trial, and capture in the square. The 20th century left another legacy of courage, that of the partisans Ancilla Marighetto and Clorinda Menguzzato, gold medals for military valor for the Resistance.
Not to be missed
- Guided tour of the Grotta di Castello Tesino, Trentino's only visitable karst cave
- The church of Santi Ippolito e Cassiano with its fifteenth-century fresco cycle
- The Museo del Legno in the seventeenth-century Palazzo Gallo, at the heart of the perteghieri story
- A hike along the Tròdo dei fiori and to the active alpine huts toward Passo Brocon
- The Roman bridge over the Guernana stream and the archaeological Sant'Ippolito hill
Αξιοθέατα
What to see in Castello Tesino
Routes · Trovido Route
