The big “Granda tower” of Spilamberto (Modena), the tallest in the perimeter circuit of walls around the ancient castle, still stands alongside what was once the main access gate to the town, which overlooked the road leading to the capital of the Duchy, Modena.
The original structure dates back to 1210, when fortified Spilamberto was founded by the Comune of Modena, as a front against their rivals, Bologna, on the Panaro river. The structure of the "Granda tower" gained its current dimensions and characteristics later; in 1344 it formed part of the entire fortified structure consisting of a triple circle of walls surrounded by a moat.
About 30m high, topped by Ghibelline merlons, the tower had a roof with wooden struts until it was damaged by bombing in WWII. There are clockfaces on the east and west upper facades. Above the doors flanking the tower are holes for the bolts that pulled the chains to lift the two drawbridges, one for carts and horses the other for pedestrians. The tower has always housed prisons including "messer Filippo's cell", which features graffiti that has been called the first comic strip in history.
The complex was known as "the fort" until the end of the 19th century; it is a significant manuscript in stone, since careful observation reveals much about its construction. The tower today houses a section of the archaeological museum and the headquarters of the Order of Nocino Modenese.
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