La Colombera

About

The origins of La Colombera, date back to the beginning of the 15th century when the town of Riva del Garda decided to build a series of towers from the utmost north of Mount Brione to the mouth of Albola to defend itself. These towers were also used as a house for the country-guards, the so-called salteri. Today's building dates back to the 16th century transformation from the feudal tower into he "dovecote", a place intended to house pigeons, whose flesh was considered very excellent. We can clearly see this restored look in the delicate architecture of the upper part built with bricks, an ideal house for pigeons, giving a graceful enrichment to the tower. The most significant element of La Colombera is the valuable portal with its delicate 16th century taste. There is a graven stone which gives a touch of nobility to the front of the stocky tower. That's why, when wartime was over, the tower was used as a residence for the high-class people, and the same happened to the other dovecotes in Riva. Moreover, building materials and techniques used show traces of the influence of the near Venetian and Po Valley towers. The tower was built with artistic chimney pots and barrel vault, and the bricks were used to make the arches. The spacious porticoes are really beautiful and influenced by the dominical building style, suitable for drawings, but nowadays there is a typical and elegant restaurant. The courtyard, closed by walls, gives a simple noble taste to this typical and historical place. In 1998 La Colombera Residence was radically restored and after a hard and patient wor

At a glance

• Verified listing
• Typical visit: about 1 hour