Municipality of Valentano
Lat. 42.558369 Long. 11.824970
Piazza Cavour, 1
01018 Valentano (VT) Italy
Tel. ++39 0761453001 – 0761453702 – 0761422353
(43,3 kmq con 2930 in habitants: Valentanesi)
Valentano, typical medieval village with tufa buildings, rises on a hill 538 m. above sea-level that is situated west of the Bolsena lake, 34 km. NW from the chief town Viterbo. It lies in a panoramic position between lake and seafrom which it’s respectively 8 and 30 km. away. It’s a village with mostly agrarian economy, it owns a little handicraft improving centre.
In the restored Rocca farnese (XIV century), there’s the prehistorical Tuscia and Farnese family museum.
The village boasts very ancient origins like the recent and precious archaeological discovery in its territory shows: there’s modest marks of human’s presence that dates back to Paleolithic and Neolithic, the other way round to the numerous ones of the Bronze Age (about XI century before Christ), found everywhere on the municipal territory. In the Lago di Mezzano, situated 452 m. above sea-level, a few kilometers Nw from the village,it’s been found lake-dweller installations of the Bronze Age that have given back ceramic,bronze and wooden finds; in the areas adjacent the Olpeta river, its effluent, on the contrary, it has been found things of the Iron Age.
Not much is the etruscan presence that is concentrated on the Monte Becco which overhangs the village. The first historical dates go back to IX century when. on a document is indicated a centre whose neme is Valentanu but more trustworthy are the informations referring to its submission to Viterbo going back to 1193. It was invaded from the barbarians in 1328 and burnt down. It was rebuilt in 1331 and it still suffered the raids from powerful vassals which raged on this area. With the aid of the cardinal Albornoz, in 1357, Valentano came back to the church’s ownership and following it was given to Farnese family in 1368.
The village had some years of prosperity; the village’s centre was redesigned and the Rocca was enlarged. It was part of Castro Duchy from 1537 and it followed his destiny untill the downfall in 1649. After the Castro’s destruction, for a little period, it was the administrative seat of the Duchy but, like the Farnese, Valentano suffered a relentless decline. However, a lot of well-preserved monuments remains to testimony of the facts happened.
On the top of the village, which panoramically dominates the valleys below, on the remains of a previous castle of fourteenth century, it was built, under order of Pier Luigi Farnese, in XV century,the majestic Rocca, further than 20 m. high, it owns a beautiful facade with a unique brick colonnade. Used for a monastery from 1731, after its recent restoration, it accomodates the museum of prehistory, Tuscia and Rocca Farnese. Other monuments worth visiting are: the Collegiate church of S.Giovanni Evangelista (XII century), the Municipal Palace, S.Croce church and a little further on from the historical centre, the Sanctuary of the health. In addition to the museums, the lake of Mezzano is worth visiting. In the municipal area of Valentano there’s also the picturesque and ancient centre of Villa Fontane, on the caldera’s side of the Bolsena Lake, and the touristic residential village of Felceti.
MEZZANO LAKE
The little lake of Mezzano, situated on the limit between the provinces of Viterbo and Grosseto, m.452 above sea-level, it’s 4 km. far from Valentano; it has a round shape with extension of 47 hectares, perimeter km.2,5; max depth m.36. It has just one effluent, the Olpeta river that, after crossing the conca of Latera and the Lamone valley, flows into the Fiora river, a little more downhill than Ponte S.Pietro. It is situated in a depression of the ground created by the vulcanic activity which interested the Caldera of Latera of which Mezzano is part of. In the lake’s water, in 1971 were luckily pulled out some finds of the bronze Age,to that followed deepened researchs which demonstrated the presence of two flooded areas of settlements going back, the first one to the bronze Age and the other one to the iron Age: its ceramic, bronze and wooden finds are exposed in the museum of Valentano.
PREHISTORY MUSEUM, TUSCIA AND ROCCA FARNESE
the museum, equipped in the Farnese castle in Valentano (VT), fully recovered after a long restoration, is divided into two sections like the informations card says: The section on the prehistory exposes the finds coming from the high Lazio, with didactic apparatus on the prehistorical problems of the whole centre of Italy. The interested period goes from the paleolithic (more than 500.000 years ago) to the first iron Age (2900 years ago).
The main aim of the museum’s route, is to present the environmental, cultural, socioeconomic transformations of the prehistorical Tuscia. The explicative boards and the big reconstructive plastics are supported by videos with short documentaries. A deepening is reserved to the finds of the Mezzano lake. The section on the Middle Ages and Renaissance, is based on the development of Valentano and its area from the high Middle age (VII century) till the contemporary age. The Farnese family’s history is particularly pointed out from ‘300 untill ‘600, gold era of the Castro Duchy. The museum’s services include a sale and restaurant place, a photo-laboratory, a restoring-laboratory and a room for didactic practical activities referring to the museum’s subjects.
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