Palazzolo Dello Stella: Archaeology, Frescoes and Routes

Palazzolo Dello Stella offers a variety of themes for culture lovers and active visitors: archaeological finds, frescoes and historic chapels, as well as opportunities for cycling and walking. You can also take a trip on the Stella in small boats. You can tailor your stay to the area’s historical traces or to getting active on the routes and river.

Archaeology from the Neolithic to the Roman era

The Museo dello Stella is an archaeological museum in Piancada, housed in the Casa del Marinaretto. Its collections are being reorganized. Most of them come from excavations at a nearby Neolithic village, which has been studied stratigraphically since 1992. The history of these finds leads back to a village from the Neolithic period and its inhabitants.

A rural Roman villa is located in Piancada-Lamarutto. It bears the designation PdS 010/ UA PALAZZOLO 02 and features numerous mosaic tesserae. There are also marble slabs used for flooring and wall coverings. A Roman milestone is dedicated to Emperor Constantine and dates from after 312 AD. The archaeological themes thus range from a Neolithic settlement to Roman architecture and inscriptions.

The Roman bridge on the Via Annia is also part of Palazzolo dello Stella’s history: the remains are thought to indicate that the bridge had two arches. This theory is based on an underwater survey conducted in 2021. Excavations in Palazzolo dello Stella also uncovered the remains of a Neolithic burial, which is associated with the inhabitants of the village there.

Chapels, frescoes and local history

The Chiesetta della Beata Vergine del Suffragio is known for its frescoes from the first half of the 16th century. Its presbytery, the area around the altar, is entirely painted and has a barrel vault. A barrel vault extends lengthwise in an arch; here, this architectural feature meets a completely painted interior surface.

The votive chapel Chiesetta di Sant’Antonio Abate in Piancada dates from the 15th century. The Chiesetta di Sant’Antonio Abate on the embankment of the Turgnano River is a regular destination for cyclists and walkers. At Ciasteòn in Palazzolo dello Stella, the place name recalls a fortified lowland settlement built by Palaeo-Venetic groups to control the crossing of the Stella. The fortification has been completely dismantled; the place name and archaeological traces remain.

Cycling, walking and a trip on the Stella

The Stella cycle route R024 includes the Palazzolo dello Stella railway station as a waypoint. Some sections run along flat asphalt roads shared with other traffic, well-maintained gravel paths and cycle paths. Surfaces may change due to maintenance work. For planning a cycling trip, the changing terrain is a tangible difference from travelling by water.

Small boats travel from the mouth of the Stella River to the small, picturesque harbour of Rivarotta. This means that a cycle route with different surfaces and a river trip with a named destination are both available as activities. The chapel on the Turgnano embankment adds another option as a regular destination for walkers and cyclists.

Discover more destinations: Premariacco, Prepotto, Colloredo di Monte Albano, Tarvisio, Nimis, Lignano Sabbiadoro, Sauris and Pradamano.

Return to the overview of destinations: Udine.