Cavazzo Carnico

If you want to discover the history and architecture of the town, it is worth visiting the eighteenth century Church of San Daniele housing valuable works from Venice, and the votive churches of San Rocco and San Candido. The Pieve of S. Stefano at Cesclans gives the best idea of just how much history these places harbour. Sat on a raised position not far out of town, the origins of the church go very far back in time. The current building was restored after the earthquake in 1976 to a previous layout, although it originally dates back to the 8th or 9th century. You can visit a little Antiquarium underneath the church, where an interesting exhibition illustrates the history of the place and the holy building. The Antiquarium is part of the CarniaMusei museum network. From the Pieve you can go down into the centre of Cesclans where you can visit the birthplace of poet, writer, playwright and director Siro Angeli. A plaque on the façade along the main street clearly marks the site. You can still see several examples of Carnic houses with their typical arcades and loggias in the four towns of Cavazzo, Mena, Somplago and Cesclans, including Casa Brunetti-D’Anna, Puppini-Zanetti, Cappello and Puppini in Cavazzo, Casa Barazzutti in Mena and Casa Pillinini in Somplago, which has been restored after the earthquake of 1976. Gaspar’s mill, as it is known, in Cavazzo Carnico was also restored to its former glory and is the only well-preserved example of the numerous watermills that were dotted around the valley of the lake up until the 1860s. Monte Festa Fort is tied to more recent history. It was built at the turn of the twentieth century as part of a structured defence system known as the Alto Tagliamento (Upper Tagliamento) to oer protection against attacks from Austria and was equipped with batteries of cannons for long range oensives. A last bastion of defence during the First World War, it is perched like an eagle's nest on the towering Festa summit nowadays.