Carassai

Situated about 15 kilometers away from the sea, in the Middle Ages Carassai was called “Castrum Guardiae”, but people used to call it “Carrascale” or “Carnassale”. Today it is possible to locate two part of the town: the first one, of fedual origin, is known as “Castello Vecchio”( old castle), the other one of medieval origin is called “Castello Nuovo”(new castle).In the Castello Nuovo there are the ruins of fortified walls dating back to the XIV and XV centuries, the so called “Camminamenti Militari”. In the Castello Nuovo we can admire the facade of the palace where Boffo da Massa, Lord of Carassai, lived from 1382 untill 1387. Then we find the church of San Lorenzo, built in 1196; the church of S. Maria del Buon Gesù probably dates back to the XV century: inside, we can see the wonderful painting of Pagani di Monterubbiano (1490-1568).Some kilometers away from the town centre we find the famous medieval castle of Rocca Monte Varmine, dating back to the XVI century; in the last century the first firearm has been found here.