Pergine Valsugana: History, Museums and Churches
Accommodation in Pergine Valsugana
History and Culture in Pergine Valsugana
Pergine Valsugana reveals its history through buildings, museums and sacred sites. Castel Pergine is located on a hill above Pergine Valsugana and the surrounding mountains. The first confirmed records date from 845, during the Carolingian period. The castle was built in the 12th century and later expanded.
File:Pergine Valsugana-Buss-panorama of Buss and Pergine Valsugana.jpg
Photo: Matteo Ianeselli via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Castel Pergine includes a path along the outer walls, a park between the two rings of walls and a first level that can be visited independently. Guided tours are available by prior reservation. A path through the forest connects Parco Ai Tre Castagni with Castel Pergine.
Churches and Distinctive Architecture
The Chiesa di Santa Maria is a Late Gothic church built of red stone and dedicated to the Nativity of the Virgin Mary. Its first documented mention dates from 1183; the bell tower was built between 1511 and 1518. During restoration work in 1981, frescoes from the early 15th century were discovered behind the altar in the Chiesa di San Carlo. They were created by a Bohemian painter and are probably among the oldest in the Pergine area.
Another architectural detail can be found at Palazzo a Prato. Its original structure dates from the early 16th century and comprised the buildings numbered 15 to 23. The distinctive façade features a three-part window on the first upper floor, flanked on both sides by single-part windows with ornately worked pilasters. Capitals decorated with flowers and volutes characterize the three-part window; the single-part windows display a Tuscan-Albertian style.
Museums Between Community Life and Craftsmanship
The Museo della Banda Sociale is dedicated to the history of the Banda Sociale di Pergine, Pergine’s oldest cultural association still in operation. The Museo della Scuola was established in 1997 in Pergine Valsugana following the interest of a group of teachers from Don Milani primary school in objects relating to school history, which are considered cultural assets of high cultural value. Since summer 2013, it has been housed in the underground rooms of the new Teatro Comunale. Visits and guided tours are available only by prior reservation.
The Museo degli Attrezzi Agricoli e Artigianali displays tools used in milk processing and cheese making, sausage making, blacksmithing, milling, carpentry, cooperage, the production of “dalmedre”, shoemaking, weaving, rope making and agricultural work.
Nature and Summer Experiences
Lago Pudro provides a habitat for rare water birds, including grey herons, kingfishers and little bitterns. In summer, Pergine Valsugana offers equipped beaches in San Cristoforo: there are green and sandy beach areas where sport plays an important role.
Further Destinations
For your further planning: Padergnone, Condino, Lombardi, Marilleva 900, Mori, Piscine, Sarche and Vigolo Vattaro.
For the higher-level travel overview: Trentino.
