Castrum Lodroni in valli Giudicarie (Storo, TN). Constructive peculiarities and conservation state of a border castle

The Lodrone castle in Storo (Trento district) is mentioned for the first time in some documents dating back to 1189 and represents a peculiar case from many points of view. Historical sources give the only mention (for the Trento area) a dolone, a fortified settlement probably identifiable with the oldest part of the current architectural complex. At the end of the XII century, it was already organized into an upper and a lower castle which seem to have been subject to two different managements in those years. As for the material aspect, the current state partially in ruins allows us to carry out privileged observations on the construction techniques quality, on the particular finishing methods, on the parts connection and on the conservation state. At the same time, it requires our attention to a monument that needs to be recovered and preserved. This is also part of the objectives of the Italian Institute of Castles Onlus, which is active on a regional scale. The restoration is not a trivial challenge, primarily due to the size of the fortification, which is located at 520 m asl, occupies an area of about 2,275 sqm and is spread over a slope of almost 20 m. height. The urgency of defining a multidisciplinary and structured “knowledge path”, as required by the current regulations on the prevention of cultural heritage (DPCM 2011), would allow for the acquisition of new data on the castle and could direct the intervention, ensuring the design and executive quality according to the shared principles of minimum intervention. This work is meant to update the observations made during the APSAT Project “Ambiente e Paesaggi dei Siti d’Altura Trentini” (2013) and is intended as a contribution to the development of the historical construction “Interpretative model”, the first step in the safety assessment.