Rocca Sonora
15th-century triangular fortress with three cylindrical towers, a five-storey keep and underground passages, visitable with an audio guide.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The Rocca of Gualdo Cattaneo was decided by the Foligno town council in 1493 and built from 1494, when artillery was changing the look of fortifications. Work proceeded quickly, and the fortress probably took its present form between the end of 1500 and the beginning of 1501. It is also called “Rocca dei Borgia” (Borgia Fortress) in honour of Pope Alexander VI. The first castellan, Giovanni Olivieri from Foligno, was obliged to live there with the garrison.
The fortress has a triangular plan, with a cylindrical tower with a sloping base at each corner, linked to the others by underground passages. The main keep, about 20 metres high and with a base circumference of 80 metres, has five floors with the rooms needed for defence and for the life of the garrison. It formed a second line of defence behind the village walls and was designed to hold out alone against a long siege. Perugia always opposed its construction and tried in vain to demolish it.
In 1624 the fortress hosted Galileo Galilei for a few days. In the second half of the 17th century the complex fell into decay and required restoration in 1695; in 1877 it was still in poor condition and part of the corbels had collapsed, which were rebuilt during the 1955 restoration. Today the fortress is the village’s main monument and is visited with an audio guide.
Highlights
- Triangular fortress with three cylindrical towers with sloping bases
- Keep about 20 metres high on five floors
- Underground passages linking the towers
- Visit with audio guide included in the ticket
- View over the medieval village and the valley
- Operated by
- Comune di Gualdo Cattaneo
- Visitors per year
- approx. 3,239
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €3.50 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €2.50 |
The ticket includes the audio guide. FAI members: reduced admission.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
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Getting there & parking
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Amenities & dining
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Events & venue rental
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Plan your visit
| Audio guide | yes |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Audio guide included in the ticket; visits by reservation are also possible outside opening hours. |
