ITAMore information :
The steep ramp leading from Piazza del Municipio to the top of the hill is dominated by the massive Clock Tower, a large structure that, since the Middle Ages, marked the entrance to the Cassero. The building housed the Calfurnia, the large bell that would later be moved inside the more recent Cassero Tower; its sound marked the days, and in the evening, after its final tolls, anyone who committed evil or crimes incurred double the penalty.
The building, owned by the municipality, was sold in 1621 to the nuns of San Girolamo al Cassero with the obligation to maintain it in good condition. They built the sacristy there, overlooking the Church of Sant'Angelo. Externally, after an initial 17th-century restoration in 1779, two buttresses were needed to support the ancient masonry.
The loggia at the top of the tower houses the Pinacoteca Comunale's lapidary, containing coats of arms and inscriptions from the Cassero area. From here, you can enjoy an extraordinary view of the Piazza del Comune below and the Valle di Chio that opens up behind the Vasari Loggia.
