The Underwater Treasure of Lake Viverone: A Journey into the Bronze Age.

When you admire the calm waters of Lake Viverone or walk along its shores, you are looking at much more than just a beautiful natural oasis. Just below the surface of the water is a fascinating and thousand-year-old story that takes us back in time to around 3500 years ago, at the height of the Bronze Age..

The discovery of the underwater world.

It all started in the mid-1960s thanks to the brave and solitary dives of Guido Giolitto, a passionate local explorer. His tireless work brought to light three ancient submerged prehistoric settlements, among which the site known as the ‘Emissary’ stands out for its importance.

This discovery proved to be a milestone for not only Italian but also European archaeology, by including Viverone in the maps of the great ancient civilizations.

How was the stilt village?

Imagine a large village suspended over the water. The ‘Emissario’ site had a circular shape with a diameter of approximately 70 metres, defended from the outside by a robust palisade system. Archaeologists have mapped the remains of about 5000 wooden poles (mainly oaks and alders) that once supported the village platform. The houses were charming huts with double sloping roofs, built using light materials such as half-timbered walls covered with clay.

Daily life between land and water.

What did our ancestors do on stilts? Theirs was a hard-working and incredibly vital community. The finds recovered from the lake tell us about:

Fireworkers: They produced terracotta pots by cooking them in open fires at temperatures close to 800 degrees. Many of these vases were elegantly decorated with grooves or mysterious circular embossed ‘couples’..
Weavers: Yarns were processed in the village. The findings of dozens of loom weights and terracotta ‘fusaiole’ (small discs used to balance spindles during spinning) show us the importance of this activity.
Farmers and fishermen: As is logical to expect, the lake and the mainland provided sustenance. Beautiful bronze fishing hooks have emerged, but also falcetti used for harvesting, a sign of a solid agricultural base.

Warriors and lords of metal.

But the inhabitants of Viverone were not just quiet farmers. They were masters in metalworking and lived in a cultural hub well connected with the rest of Europe. Spectacular objects have re-emerged from the mud of the lake: swords, spearheads and daggers of different shapes, suggesting the existence of a class of warriors. There was no lack of luxury and aesthetics: Women and men adorned themselves with pendants, rings and pins in shiny bronze.

As evidence of the high social and economic level of this civilization, even bronze horse bites have been found: This means that the dwellers of stilt houses bred, rode, and perhaps used horses as a great horse. status symbol.

Live the story

Today, Lake Viverone represents the ‘conquest of a new frontier in Europe in the second millennium BC’. Coming here does not only mean enjoying nature, good food and relaxation, but being able to walk a few steps from one of the richest and most exciting pile-dwelling sites in northern Italy.

A real invisible treasure, which makes our lake a magical place, where prehistory still lives under the waves.

The Underwater Treasure of Lake Viverone: A Journey into the Bronze Age.

When you admire the calm waters of Lake Viverone or walk along its shores, you are looking at much more than just a beautiful natural oasis. Just below the surface of the water is a fascinating and thousand-year-old story that takes us back in time to around 3500 years ago, at the height of the Bronze Age.

The discovery of the underwater world.

This discovery proved to be a milestone for not only Italian but also European archaeology, by including Viverone in the maps of the great ancient civilizations.

How was the stilt village?

Daily life between land and water.

What did our ancestors do on stilts? Theirs was a hard-working and incredibly vital community. The finds recovered from the lake tell us about fireworkers, weavers, farmers and fishermen.

Fireworkers

They produced terracotta pots by cooking them in open fires at temperatures close to 800 degrees. Many of these vases were elegantly decorated with grooves or mysterious circular "couples" in relief.

Weavers

Yarns were processed in the village. The findings of dozens of loom weights and terracotta "fusaioles" (small discs used to balance spindles during spinning) show us the importance of this activity.

Farmers and fishermen

As is logical to expect, the lake and the mainland provided sustenance. Beautiful bronze fishing hooks have emerged, but also falcetti used for harvesting, a sign of a solid agricultural base.

Warriors and lords of metal

The inhabitants of Viverone were not just quiet farmers. They were masters in metalworking and lived in a cultural hub well connected with the rest of Europe. Spectacular objects have re-emerged from the mud of the lake: swords, spearheads and daggers of different shapes, suggesting the existence of a class of warriors. There was no lack of luxury and aesthetics: Women and men adorned themselves with pendants, rings and pins in shiny bronze. As evidence of the high social and economic level of this civilization, even bronze horse bites have been found: This means that the dwellers of stilt houses bred, rode, and perhaps used horses as a great horse. status symbol.

Weapons

Spectacular objects have re-emerged from the mud of the lake: swords, spearheads and daggers of different shapes, suggesting the existence of a class of warriors.

Jewelry

In the village there was no lack of luxury and aesthetics: Women and men adorned themselves with pendants, rings and pins in shiny bronze.

Status symbol

As evidence of the high social and economic level of this civilization, even bronze horse bites have been found: This means that stilt dwellers bred, rode and perhaps used horses as a great status symbol.

Live the story

A real invisible treasure, which makes our lake a magical place, where prehistory still lives under the waves.

the Villa Lucca Park

Overlooking the lake and surrounded by greenery, the Villa Lucca Park is now a Cultural Park: a space where nature, history and cultural activities meet, offering an authentic experience that is accessible to all.

A place that preserves its bucolic soul, today enhanced to welcome events, meetings and moments of sharing, becoming a reference point for the cultural life of Viverone.

A park that tells the story of the territory

Between historic trees, paths in the green and views of the lake, the park offers a well-kept and suggestive environment.

Inside there are:

the Biblioteca Civica Maestra Teresa Bertoldo, hosting several events throughout the year
the Documentation Centre of Lake Viverone, dedicated to the submerged pile-dwelling site UNESCO heritage
a hall of fame dedicated to illustrious people of the territory, with an artistic installation representing Viverone, designed and created by Martina Zena and some tiles made in collaboration with the pupils of the primary school of Viverone

A viewpoint will also be accessible shortly, designed to offer a suggestive observation point on the lake: an open-air stage.

The Villa Lucca Park is also a space dedicated to live culture, with green areas and spaces designed to host shows, concerts, weddings and events surrounded by nature.

The events also enhance the territory, bringing together music, tastings and the landscape in an engaging and authentic experience.

An experience to live

Walks, events and moments of relaxation: the park is a place to live slowly, between nature and culture.

Discover the scheduled events.

Documentation Centre of Lake Viverone

In the exhibition rooms, set up inside the premises of the Viverone library, in Via Umberto I 107, some important archaeological finds from the Bronze Age are exhibited within a rich itinerary that illustrates the history of the pile-dwelling site, dated to 1450 BC and included in the UNESCO ‘World Heritage List’.

Paleontological

The study of the animals and plants that lived on the surface of the earth in the ages before the present and that are revealed to us through their remains, the fossils.

Ethnoanthropological

the study of human cultures (anthropology) with particular attention to the products of the social and cultural life of peoples (ethnology)

Geological

It studies the lithosphere in terms of constituent components, rocks and minerals that compose them, of chemical-physical processes that determine their genesis, evolution, composition and modelling over time.