The mysterious towers of Tuscia

hidden, abandoned and Viterbo's "walking" tower

The 4 storey bell tower guarding the entrance to the hamlet of Bassano in Teverina holds a secret. Its stout walls enclose a much older tower hidden within for 500 years. This “double tower” is unique, definitely material for the Guiness book of records. How did this happen?

It seems that the original, the bell tower for S. Maria in Lumi church, was enclosed by the “modern“ one when the town’s defenses were updated in the second half of the 1500s by the powerful Madruzzo family. It was easier to enclose the existing tower than to destroy it and then build a new one.

The interior tower is decorated with sassy anthropomophic figures, spiral columns and a series of arched windows- all invisible to the outside world for centuries. The town suffered damage during the last world war and when the ruins were restored and repurposed as affordable housing, the hidden tower was rediscovered.

In the most panoramic part of the town one of the 18th century palaces became the home and studio of American artist Cy Twombley (1928-2011) who came to Italy in 1957 living between Rome, Gaeta and Bassano. In 2023 his sculptor son, Alessandro, (who was a student of mine many years ago ) and grandson had the Bassano palazzo restored and fitted out as as an artists’ residence and exhibition center for the Iris Foundation. Considered one of Italy’s borghi piu belli, Bassano in Teverina has preserved its authentic atmosphere.

Further down the superstrada connecting Orte and Viterbo, another tower looms above the Mediterranean brush near the tiny hamlet of Chia, near Soriano nel Cimino. In the past, this 42 metre high signal tower belonged to different noble families: the Orsini, Colonna, Lante della Rovere and Borghese princes. Today it is known as the Pasolini tower since it was the hideaway of well known Italian poet and film director, Pier Paolo Pasolini.

Pasolini’s tower, Chia

In the late 1960s when the new living quarters were being built, the workers let me take a look around. The modern apartments at the tower’s base were like a ranch house with 5 bedroom suites for guests. After Pasolini’s death the complex was sold but the area along the river where Pasolini shot his film “The Gospel according to Matthew” has been declared a “literary park “.

There is a plethora of interesting sites ready to welcome cultural tourism in this area but also many towers that are abandoned and derelict. One of these is the San Masseo tower near the Tiber river in Orte. Once belonging to the Jerusalem Knights Templars (Cavalieri Gerosolimtani), today it is the location of the town dump or “ecological island”.

then and now - thanks to Abbondio Zuppante of Orte for the photos

Other hidden towers can be glimpsed from the train as you travel between Vetralla and Capranica or when walking the pilgrims’ route - the Via Francigena. Known locally as the Torri d’Orlando, they are actually Roman funerary monuments (like those along Via Appia Antica) and the bell tower of Santa Maria in Campis. The towers rise above the surrounding hazlenut orchards where the stories of Charlemagne and his Paladini, who once inhabited the area, remain.

Torri d’Orlando between Vetralla and Capranica

The presence of ancient towers in Tuscia reminds us of the area’s importance in Medieval and Renaissance times. When the students of late Professor Enrico Guidoni were studying the medieval walls and towers of Vetralla the inhabitants were perplexed since most had forgotten they ever existed. Over the centuries the walls were used as part of new buildings until, like the hidden tower in Bassano, they were hidden from view and forgotten. As I sit here typing in my ground level studio/library I can admire some unplastered stretches of the original medieval town walls that keep the large room cool in summer.

The ancient Rocca castle of Vetralla was destroyed during the 1944 bombings and a fake round tower was hastily asssembled from the ruins. Remains of one of the Rocca’s original towers still survives in a tiny garden near Piazza della Rocca. An absurd non-functioning elevator was installed to a lower level but only worked for a few weeks.

In Viterbo, Tuscania and Tarquinia the original 12th century walls and towers are very evident and an antique map of Viterbo is still valid for touring the city. If you visit during the first week of September you will experience the city in full festival mode when a huge lighted tower - the Macchina di Santa Rosa, “la torre che cammina “ is carried through the darkened city by one hundred porters -the facchini di Santa Rosa. Click on the underlined links to find out more about this extraordinary festival.

Porters of Santa Rosa

Viterbo 1572, Francesco Valegio’s “Raccolta delle piu’ illustri e famose citta’ di tutto il Mondo “ —— from my map collection

Tarquinia ‘s many towers and ancient walls

Voicemap’s audio guide for Viterbo is the modern way to visit this striking walled city. Follow my directions on your independent walk from Porta Romana through the medieval quarter of San Pellegrino exiting the walls at Porta San Pietro. Along the way my voice will accompany you, pointing out the city’s highlights.

If you want to experience what it is like to live in a medieval tower check out Torre di Vico . Owner Giulia will take good care of you, just don’t complain about all the stairs you must climb to get to your suite with a view!

The first weeks of September will be busy ones here: besides the Santa Rosa celebrations that date back 700 years there is an Irish music festival in Tuscania and opera in Opera Extravaganza’s outdoor theatre, in the gardens just below the Painted Palazzo. Come and be a part of the fun and the history — without the confusion and crowds of the big tourist cities!

Hope you are enjoying these insider tips from an historian, author and lecturer living here in central Italy for the past 60 years. For more indepth information about the mysterious towers and festivals north of Rome you might like a copy of one of my books. Available in local museums and tourist sites or directly from my website for book reviews and orders . Copies can be found also on ebay…just type in the title of the book you want.

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