Holiday apartment in Serravalle di Chienti – Culture in the Chienti Valley

Serravalle di Chienti between valley, history and discovery

Serravalle di Chienti lies at the entrance to the valley of the Chienti River.

Fossils and historic buildings

The Museo Paleontologico Archeologico offers workshops, guided tours and educational areas. It is divided into two sections: one is dedicated to fossil malacofauna and documents its development from the Jurassic to the Holocene. The second focuses on fossil mammals from the Pleistocene sites of Collecurti and Cesi. The collection also includes fossils dating from 700,000 to 900,000 years ago. The various formats are displayed side by side in the museum and complement the two main thematic areas.

The Chiesa di Santa Lucia was built in the 12th century and preserves frescoes by Giovanni Angelo D’Antonio. In the hamlet of Castello di Serrapetrona, the Fortezza dei Da Varano served as a military outpost for controlling the obligatory passage between Colfiorito, the Chienti Valley and the town. Significant sections of the walls and one of its five towers have survived.

The area’s historic water engineering is another distinctive feature. The Botte dei da Varano is a hydraulic structure approximately 200 metres long, built by Giulio Cesare Varano in the 15th century to drain the plain. The water channel known as the Condotto Romano is about one kilometre long, mostly underground and constructed from carefully hewn blocks of travertine. The blocks are not local in the strict sense; along its entire length, the channel has a uniform gradient of 0.2%. The Botte is approximately 200 metres long, while the Condotto Romano measures about one kilometre.

Walks at the entrance to the Chienti Valley

The Parco Fluviale offers opportunities for walks.

A regional tradition with a competitive character

At the triennial celebrations in the parish of San Lorenzo in Dignano, three pairs of festively decorated oxen compete against one another. The pairs represent the parish’s three localities; the competition is about who can plough the straightest furrow down the slope of a mountain. Alongside museums and historic buildings, this tradition gives a stay a distinctive cultural character.

Getting to the historic sites

The Fortezza dei Da Varano can be reached from Foligno and Civitanova via the SS 77 della Val di Chienti, taking the Serravalle di Chienti exit. The route to the Botte dei da Varano also leads from Foligno and Civitanova via the SS 77, either taking the Serravalle di Chienti or Colfiorito exit and then following the signs to Fonte delle Mattinate. From Foligno and Civitanova, both destinations are reached via the SS 77; to get to the Botte, continue via Serravalle di Chienti or Colfiorito.

Discover more places in the surrounding area

For further orientation, you can also explore Montecassiano, Montelupone, Montefano, Petriolo, Tolentino, Visso, Fiastra and Massa.

For the broader travel overview: Macerata.