Travelcast Piceno - Audio & Video Guide per la Provincia di Ascoli Piceno

From the Church of Santa Lucia we have two possibilities to continue on our walk. Either through a steep stairway that runs along the right-hand side of the church and leads directly to Porta Castello (Castle Gate), or by a road that is slightly longer, but which allows us the opportunity to observe the alleyways of the town.
In Via Camilla Peretti, on the left, the façade of the house that belonged to the Aloysi family stands out, with the ruins of a gothic arch underneath it where an important sculpture once stood.

The right side of this road is entirely occupied by Palazzo Scoccia, a building that dates from the 18th century, and is characterised by the distinctive reddish colouration of the bricks. The slightly irregular façade has its central point in the portal with a round arch, above which a circular window can be found. Continuing to follow this road, we head upwards towards Vicolo Torrione and we turn onto Via Medora Patriarca. Here, passing under an arch with a decorative band of brickwork, we continue directly ahead, observing, to the right, the attractive portal of a 19th century building. Immediately after, the road begins to rise, becoming steeper, and at the right we can clearly see the structure of the vaulted bell tower of Santa Lucia.
At the end of the road we reach the foot of a steep rise that leads to Porta Castello (Castle Gate). Turning towards what is the back of the Church of Santa Lucia, we can see how this wall rests against a thicker retaining wall, necessary during the construction of the church.
Let us start the walk upwards, taking a short pause to try and imagine what the original appearance of the building might have been. The plan that had been approved by Pope Sixtus V,  foresaw the secondary façade in the place where we currently see the entrance, while the main façade would have been directed towards the plaza, precisely where we are now, in the direction of Porta Castello. The street we are on,  leads to Montalto, a town that was very dear to Sixtus V, and which he had elevated to a Diocese.
At the summit we reach Porta Castello. Together with Porta Marina and the now destroyed Porta Maggiore, this constituted one of the three points of entry into the town. Among the three, Porta Castello is the oldest. It is built directly into the city walls in the highest part of the hill, the one connected to the Grottammare Castle.
Passing  through this entry, we come to the other side where we have a better view of the entire fortification. Turning back towards the Gate, we have an ample stretch of surrounding landscape on our left, while at the right we can see a sloping embankment that is extremely dense in the way that the bricks have been laid, and which contains a narrow rounded arch. This part of the wall is certainly more recent than the construction of the Gate and we can date it to the 13th century. Looking at the building, it is noteworthy is how it has been transformed into a house. We can see the window openings and the roof that was laid as covering. The integration of  the tower into the building that houses the Gate is quite curious, and there are still signs of the crests and drain holes. A wingtip decoration can be seen that is most certainly later than the construction of the fortification and is inspired by the Ghibelline battlements, but in this case, it is only for aesthetic reasons. Returning once again under the Gate we note, on the left, an architrave with a peculiar inscription that was recently made by the current owner.

Users' Comments (0) Comment language: English (0), Italian (0)

Add your comment