Archaeological Park of Castel Seprio

The Archaeological Park of Castel Seprio, which also includes the Antiquarium, is a state-owned institute (inalienable cultural property), intended for public use. The area is located in a suburban territory, in its northern extremity, of the Municipality of Castelseprio; it occupies an area of about 130,000 square meters (33,000 square meters owned by the Province of Varese) of which about 55,000 square meters are open to the public, on a plateau overlooking the middle Olona Valley. The Archaeological Park includes, in a rich wooded setting, the remains of a castrum developed in the 5th century A.D. on pre-existing military buildings of the 4th century A.D., surrounded by mighty turreted walls, which also defend part of the outpost at the bottom of the valley known as the Monastery of Torba (owned by the FAI).

It depends on the Superintendence for the Archaeological Heritage of Lombardy, a peripheral body of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities; the same Superintendence is responsible for the economic management and that of the personnel working in the area. The Director in charge is Dr. Paola Anna Marina De Marchi.

The complex of the Castrum and the village, with its specific properties, is among the sites that compete for the year 2008 to be included in the list of cultural sites under the UNESCO trademark together with other Italian locations involved in the project " Italy Langobardorum - The Longobards in Italy - The Places of Power (568 - 774 AD) ".