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Trèstina

From Prehistory to the Twenty-first Century: Full Circle

A town in western Umbria, a frazione of Città di Castello: 43°22.3N, 12°14E. Altitude: 280 m.
[image ALT: A 2‑lane road lined with late‑20c plaster and stucco buildings, 2 or 3 stories tall. It is a view of the town of Trestina, Umbria (central Italy).]

Trestina, the main drag.

Trestina is a frazione of the comune of Città di Castello, 11 km S of that town on the road to Umbertide, SE by another 14 km. Until the 20c, it must have been an insignificant old hamlet; it has now grown into an active local commercial and industrial center (furnishings, building supplies, automotive, and large retail stores) and one of the economic motors of northern Umbria, with about 2500 inhabitants — larger than many independent comuni.

Trestina's recent development is in fact a return to type, though: in the Neolithic period, the upper Tiber valley and that of the Tiber's western tributary the Nestore was an important trade and population center, and large deposits of flint arrowheads and spearheads have been found. Under the Etruscan domination, Cortona took over the area; under the Romans, the center shifted to Tifernum, the modern Città di Castello, within whose orbit Trestina stayed and declined thru the fractious Middle Ages. Excavations conducted in 1879‑1901 led to finds of Etruscan and even Greek bronzes, and archaic bronzes good enough to be snapped up by the Archaeological Museum of Florence were found at nearby Taragni at about the same time: but of all this history no large remains subsist save for the Castellaccio, a ruined medieval tower on a small hill near the core of old Trestina; and the tourist is unlikely to stop here, except possibly to ask directions to Canoscio, on top of the much taller hill just 2 km N of town, that you see as a backdrop above; the churches of Canoscio are offscreen left.

[image ALT: A massive octagonal concrete block of a building about 3 stories tall, of which we see three faces. It has a group of three large doors forming an entrance, and small cruciform windows high on the faces on either side; the building sits at the end of a small brick-paved esplanade. It is a view of the church of SS. Donato e Stefano in Trestina, Umbria (central Italy).]

[ 7/1/05: 1 page, 2 photos ]

The parish church of SS. Donato e Stefano dates from the second half of the 20c: after suffering considerably during World War II, Trestina has hit a period of expansion and prosperity, which has also meant new life for her churches.

[image ALT: A small church of mixed stone and brick masonry with a tiled roof and a narrow triangular belfy; a single small ogival window can be seen, but much of the church is obscured by several cypresses. It is a view of the church of S. Pietro in Verna, Umbria (central Italy).]

[ 7/1/05: 1 page, 4 photos ]

S. Pietro is the parish church of Verna, a hamlet in the frazione of Trestina. No more information from me, but some photos, including the somewhat atypical belfry.

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Page updated: 19 May 08

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