Hi Tom,
this weekend I went to visit Montecchio Emilia and it's small but interesting fortess.
The period of the building of the fortress is unkwon but the origina structure of the castel was build around the XI century, as declared into a document of Matide di Canossa.
The forstess is on the right side of river Enza, in the  halway between Parma and  Reggio Emilia. Because of its position, the fortess was used as a sightsing fortess in the defence system created by Canossa family.
Thanks to it particoular position during the 1462 was nominated "Marquis".
For a peeriod the fortess was used as prison.
Thanks to some cleanup of the basement of the castle, some tombs of the Middle Ages came to light: a system of graves made by pebbles and clay matherials. The excavation took to light a old lime kiln (probably builded during Roman Empire) for the manifacture of the clime. This important archeological discovery confirms the existence of a fortified building starting from the XI century, during the Matildic period.
With love,
Sigyn


What to see in Montecchio Emilia: town hall, castle, inner historical city, palace Vicedomini-Cavezzi, curch of Madonna del Popolo, sanctuary of Beata Vergine dell'Olmo,  curch of San Donnino Martire and villa Aiola
What to eat: Parmiggiano Reggiano, gnocchi, cappelletti, lasagne, tortelli with herbs or potatoes or pumpkin, roast pork, zampone, Lambrusco Reggiano DOC from 1971 and other good wine.