Le castellare

According to the multifaceted academic Alberto Alpago Novello from Belluno, ‘to the north of Scurelle extends [...] the long
stony brow of the Castellare through which, cutting like an Alpine ledge between two different strata of rock, the Via  Claudia passed. Approximately 130 metres of the road can still be followed, in the most westerly part, just before the church of San Martino and San Valentino’. Whereas, a little further above, ‘in a splendid position now occupied by a couple of houses [...] there stood the castle of Nerva (or, as it was more commonly known, “Minerva”). Two ancient buildings belonging to the castle are still discernible (and, perhaps, the remains of a tower to the north)’. This is all fascinating conjecture. So, in 2003, when a landslide broke off part of a ledge at Castellare di Scurelle on the orographic left of the river Brenta, the Archaeological Services Department of the City of Trento, at the behest of the municipal council, investigated the site extensively, as, according to oral tradition and literature, this was where the old Roman road once passed. It was believed that the name of the road lived on in the designation of the overlooking Nerva (or Minerva) castle, and that there were supposed to be evident traces of carriage wheel ruts in the vicinity, which had been noted and described in the renowned publication cited above. While traces of wheel ruts are indeed visible at the site described by the author, none of the three archaeological investigations instigated discovered any useful evidence or anything else to
substantiate the existence of a former road. The scant findings unearthed from studies of the strata seem to suggest, rather, that there were settlements here in the Late Middle Ages and Modern Era, and that the hillside was terraced for agricultural purposes – indeed, the site enjoys excellent exposure to the sun. The long standing beliefs that the Roman
via Claudia Augusta passed through here have not been confirmed: although perhaps future exploration in the surrounding area may finally rediscover it.