Castles and fortifications in San Marino
Guaita Tower
The Guaita fortress is the oldest of the three towers constructed on Monte Titano, and the most famous. It was built in the 11th century and served briefly as a prison. It is one of the three towers depicted on both the national flag and coat of arms. It was registered as one of the World Heritage Sites in 2008. Guaita was rebuilt in the second half of the 15th century and in the 16th century has been covered with a slop ...Cesta Tower
De La Fratta or Cesta is one of three peaks which overlook the city of San Marino. The other two are Guaita and Montale. The tower is located on the highest of Monte Titano's summits. A museum to honor Saint Marinus, created in 1956, is located in this tower and showcases over 1,550 weapons dating from the medieval era to the modern day. It was constructed in the 13th century on the remains of an older Roman fort. Just li ...Montale Tower
Montale is one of three peaks which overlook the city of San Marino, the capital of the Republic of San Marino. The other two are De La Fratta and Guaita. The tower on the peak was constructed in the 14th century. Unlike the other two towers constructed on the mount, Montale is not open to the public. It is one of the three towers depicted on both the national flag and coat of arms of San Marino. It is thought to have bee ...Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings
Historic Site of the week
Easter Aquhorthies Stone Circle
Easter Aquhorthies stone circle, located near Inverurie, is one of the best-preserved examples of a recumbent stone circle, and one of the few that still have their full complement of stones. It consists of a ring of nine stones, eight of which are grey granite and one red jasper. Two more grey granite stones flank a recumbent of red granite flecked with crystals and lines of quartz. The circle is particularly notable for its builders' use of polychromy in the stones, with the reddish ones situated on the SSW side and the grey ones opposite.
The placename Aquhorthies derives from a Scottish Gaelic word meaning 'field of prayer', and may indicate a 'long continuity of sanctity' between the Stone or Bronze Age circle builders and their much later Gaelic successors millennia later. The circle's surroundings were landscaped in the late 19th century, and it sits within a small fenced and walled enclosure. A stone dyke, known as a roundel, was built around the circle some time between 1847 and 1866–7.