Lepontic Temple in Roldo

The hamlet of Roldo di Montecrestese faces south on a slightly projecting rock, smoothed by an ancient glacier, dropping sheer down to the Domodossola plain: within it the Tempietto Lepontico (Lepontic Temple), in the shape of a small tower, is a unicum in the whole alpine range.
It is a stone construction dating from Roman times, originally built for cultural and religious purposes: the inhabitants of Montecrestese call it simply the “Torre di Roldo” (Roldo Tower) or sometimes the “Torre dei Picchi” (Tower of the Picchi). According to local tradition, the Picchi are thought to have been brigands who owned a number of fortified houses and towers, like the one in Veglio, for use as hideaways. The Tempietto Lepontico in Roldo, divided into two rooms, a cell and a small atrium, is datable around the 1st century AD and was originally a pagan place of worship. The tower was built by raising a previous construction, which roof in heavy granite tiles was not removed and can still be seen today.
Over the centuries, the floor of the cell has suffered some damage, but what remains shows traces of a sort of mosaic. The refinement of the pattern, the care taken to lay the floor and the plaster leave no doubt: this building was originally created for religious purposes.

The building has a truly curious aspect: one single small window placed on the back wall at a height from the floor that is such that sunlight penetrates directly into the building only and exclusively in the period between the autumn equinox and that of spring (23 September – 21 March). The maximum illumination appears exactly at midday on 22 December, the winter solstice, when the sun’s ray crosses the whole temple. Is this accidental? Absolutely not. All the details were studied during construction: very probably, in fact, the temple was dedicated to Belenus, the sun god.
Part of the splendid rural architecture of Montecrestese, the Tempietto Lepontico in Roldo is one of the little gems to be found amongst the mountains of the Ossola Valley that are certainly worth visiting.

Ideal for
Everybody
You will discover
Culture, traditions and folklore
Rainy day?
History and art
Hidden treasures
Ideal for
Everybody
You will discover
Culture, traditions and folklore
Rainy day?
History and art
Hidden treasures
IAT di Domodossola
Piazza Matteotti (inside the railway station)
28845 Domodossola (VB)
See map

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