Built in the late 11th to early 12th century, Castello di Vezio reigns over Lake Como. Characterized by a main tower with square merlons similar to Cly Castle in the Aosta Valley, the castle was once connected by walls to the village of Varenna below. It was restored several times in the centuries following its construction.
Archaeological finds in the area during the late 19th century and in 1956 revealed remains of tombs from the Iron Age, along with weapons and armor. During World War I, the castle also had dungeons built as part of the defensive linea Cadorna, planned by General Luigi Cadorna to halt any German invasion southward from Switzerland.
Today, the castle is owned by the Greppi family from Milan and is open to the public. It houses gardens and a Eurasian eagle-owl named Artú, though falconering stopped in 2022. The tower houses a permanent exhibition dedicated to Lariosaurus, an extinct sea reptile from the Middle Triassic period, which was discovered in Perledo in 1830.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nicolo Ciampini
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