Castle Map

Castle

Rocca Sanvitale (Fontanellato)

Italy · 14th century

Founded
c. 1350
Style
Mannerism
Heritage status
Italian national heritage
Location
Fontanellato
Coordinates
44.88255°, 10.17296°
Links
Wikimedia Commons
Open on the map →Wikipedia ↗
Rocca Sanvitale (Fontanellato) in Italy
Photo: Carlo grifone · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Description

The Rocca Sanvitale, or Sanvitale Castle, is a fortress residence in the centre of the town of Fontanellato, near Parma, northern Italy. Construction of the moated block, accessible through a drawbridge, was begun in the 13th century, mostly completed by the 15th century, with embellishments continuing through to the 18th century. It is prototypical of the urban castle-houses of the turbulent medieval communes of Northern Italy. Until the 1930s it was the home of the descendants of the Count of Sanvitale.

The crenelated walls and asymmetric towers are surrounded by an arcaded town. Adjacent to the castle are gardens and a courtyard. The optical chamber (camera ottica) has an optical system that projects to an inside wall a view of the town through mirrors and a prism. Rocca Sanvitale is now partly a museum and partly offices and conference hall for the town administration.

Inside are the frescoes of Diane and Acteon painted in 1523–24 by Parmigianino for the Count Galeazzo Sanvitale and his wife, Paola Gonzaga.

Text adapted from “Rocca Sanvitale, Fontanellato” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

In the rankings

Rocca Sanvitale (Fontanellato) ranks #4,977 of 9,902 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #361 of the 624 mapped in Italy. Founded c. 1350, it is older than 55% of the atlas's dated landmarks, one of 797 atlas entries founded in the 14th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 2,046 times in the last 60 days, more than 74% of the atlas. 10 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Brescia, 73 km away. See how Italy compares in the castle statistics.

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