Castello di Terra

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Castello di Terra
Trapani, Sicily, Italy
Coordinates38°1′8.9″N 12°30′50.9″E / 38.019139°N 12.514139°E / 38.019139; 12.514139
Typecastle
Site information
OwnerState property
Open to
the public
No
ConditionRuins
Site history
Builtc. 1186
In use12th–19th centuries

The Castello di Terra (English: Land Castle) is a castle in Trapani, Sicily. It was originally built in the late 12th century, and was modified over the years until the 19th century. The castle is now in ruins.

History[edit]

The Castello di Terra was built in around 1186, and was expanded in the second half of the 14th century and modified again in the 16th and 17th centuries.[1] The castle was originally located at the mouth of the channel linking the Tyrrhenian Sea to the port.[2]

Parts of the castle were converted into barracks in the 19th century. The barracks were demolished in the 1970s and their site is now occupied by a police station.[1]

Archaeological excavations and a partial restoration were carried out at the castle in 1992 and 1994.[3]

Layout[edit]

The castle originally had a quadrilateral shape, with semi-circular towers along its curtain walls and rectangular towers at the corners. Today, only the northwestern face of the castle is still intact.[1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Castello di Terra". travelitalia (in Italian). Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  2. ^ "Castello di Terra". Castelli di Sicilia (in Italian). Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  3. ^ "Il Castello di terra di Trapani – "Un tesoro sottratto"". La Risacca Mensile Trapanese (in Italian). 23 May 2011. Archived from the original on 6 July 2020. Retrieved 21 August 2015.