Nature and History Intertwined for Millennia

In addition to its ecological value, Lake Frassino also holds exceptional historical and cultural significance: since 2011, it has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the transnational project “Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps”, which includes 111 sites across Italy, Switzerland, France, Germany, Austria, and Slovenia.

The first archaeological reports at Frassino date back to the 19th century, but it was thanks to the excavations conducted by Giovanni Tosina between 1971 and 1974 that the presence of a large pile-dwelling village on the southern shore of the lake was confirmed. The wooden structures discovered, belonging to pile-supported dwellings, date back to the Early and Middle Bronze Age (c. 2200–1200 BC) and were found at depths between 1 and 3 meters below the current lake level.

Further archaeological investigations, carried out by the Superintendence for Archaeological Heritage of Venetobetween 1989 and 2000, uncovered numerous artifacts that document the daily life of prehistoric communities. Among them: cups with flared rims and incised decorations, biconical cups with small knobs on the shoulder, and truncated-conical cups with inward-curving rims and vertical strap handles. These objects reveal the evolution of construction techniques, craftsmanship practices, and the relationship between humans and their environment.

A selection of the most significant finds is housed at the Civic Museum of Natural History in Verona, while others are displayed at the Environmental Archaeological Center in Legnago, which hosts a collection dedicated to Veneto’s pile-dwelling sites. Additional materials are preserved at the Documentation Center of Monzambano, which promotes and safeguards the local memory of the Lower Garda region.

Lake Frassino is one of the few Italian sites to have preserved such a comprehensive record of lacustrine archaeological remains, thanks in part to the natural protection offered by its wetland environment.

Its inclusion in the World Heritage List highlights not only its environmental importance (SCI/SPA) but also its universal cultural value: a rare convergence of biodiversity and memory, of landscape and civilization.
A living heritage, to be discovered, respected, and passed on.