Mura Carraresi

The expansion of the city walls was started by Ubertino da Carrara in 1337 and completed in 1360-62 with the construction, at the behest of Francesco il Vecchio da Carrara, of the imposing Rocca degli Alberi.

The Carrarese walls, almost 2 kilometers long, are distinguished by the alternation of large blocks of Euganean trachyte with brick, and by the 24 defense and observation towers. Each tower was equipped with various wooden floors, and some of them housed a war machine on the top. From the inside, the walls have mighty brick arches with the dual function of supporting the patrol path and, in the underlying part, creating a large space for the storage of foodstuffs.

Externally the walls were surrounded by a moat fed by the Fiumicello, an artificial canal derived in 1277 from the nearby Frassine River. To protect the foundations of the walls from the water, an embankment was built, the "mottón", which still exists today.

The medieval walls of Montagnana are nowadays one of the most intact in Europe. Due to its extension, its state of conservation and its organic nature, it constitutes a scenographic monumental ensemble of exceptional historical and touristic value.