Rocca Albornoz panoramic routes open to public for first time

Starting June 1, 2024, the panoramic routes along the towers of Rocca Albornoz in Spoleto will be opened to the public for the first time. The fortress, built in the second half of the 14th century by order of Spanish cardinal Egidio Albornoz, features six quadrangular towers connected by defensive walls. Guided tours will lead visitors through tunnels, ancient military walkways, and prisons to the tower tops, offering views of Monteluco, the Ponte delle Torri aqueduct, and the Spoleto valley. The initiative also includes access to the Malborghetto area, which shows traces of early settlements on Sant'Elia hill and now hosts a public space with facilities for performances and children's games. The Rocca houses the Museo Nazionale del Ducato di Spoleto, inaugurated in 2007 after a twenty-year restoration. The museum spans fifteen historic rooms across two levels of the Cortile d'Onore, displaying artifacts from the 4th to 15th centuries covering Christian communities, monasticism, the Lombard duchy, Carolingian-Ottonian period, papal power, communal age, and the 15th century.