Top 20 Natural Monuments around Grado

Perched on a steep karst spur plunging into the blue of the Gulf of Trieste, Duino Castle embodies the charm of Central European nobility and poetic inspiration. Owned by the Della Torre e Tasso family, this historic residence welcomes visitors amidst sumptuous halls, precious relics, and the famous Palladian spiral staircase. But it is outside that the magic happens: the lush Mediterranean park and the Rilke Trail offer breathtaking panoramas that captivated the soul of Rainer Maria Rilke, who began composing his famous Elegies here. Walking among the ancient walls and the modern Second World War bunker, you breathe an atmosphere suspended in time, where the white rock of the cliffs meets the vastness of the Adriatic in an embrace of rare beauty.

Dominating the sea, this village always offers unexpected surprises.

In the area of the Risorgive del Timavo, where the Timavo river emerges from the vegetation, the medieval church of San Giovanni in Tuba stands suggestively with its late Gothic style.

This monument is nothing short of enchanting, not only for the structure but also for the site in which it is located, breathtaking!

www.viaggiatorelento.com Dating back to 1483, the place of worship is a rare example in the region of Gothic ogival style of Carinthian taste. It was built at the behest of the Walsee lords and partly rebuilt after the damage of the Second World War. It stands on the site of an early Christian basilica, of which a wall and a mosaic dating back to the 5th century are preserved in the presbytery, built on an ancient Roman temple. From 568 the territory was occupied by the Lombards. In 615 various relics and precious furnishings of the basilica of Aquileia were buried in the church to save them from the barbarian attack by the Avars on the Friuli area, they remained buried until their discovery in 1085. Around 950 the monastery of San Giovanni al Timavo or Tuba also arose. The monastery and the church were rebuilt again by the Benedictine monks towards the middle of the 10th century in conjunction with the chapter of the cathedral of San Giusto in Trieste which had rights over the church. In the 11th century the fief of Duino depended on the Patriarchate of Aquileia and the patriarch Enrico united the monastery of San Giovanni to the abbey of San Martino della Beligna in Aquileia, the patriarch Ulrico also confirmed this union. In 1085 during the restoration works the ancient buried treasure was discovered and brought back to Aquileia, the discovery increased the fame of the monastery and in particular the festival for the feast of the day of its patron saint (June 24), it began to attract a multitude of people from every part of the Carso up to Trieste, the patriarch Ulrico in 1112 had the basilica rebuilt, expanding it and in 1120 it became an abbey and therefore provided it with large possessions: ten mansi located in Duino, the parish of Marciliana (Monfalcone) and ten mansi in the locality of Gradisca. Source Wikipedia

The springs of the Timavo River, where the river resurfaces from its underground path for the last stretches before the sea. The area of the springs, located in the municipality of Duino-Aurisina, has been an important place of worship since ancient times. The presence of a river that flowed from the earth had intrigued and frightened primitive populations. Diomedes, Hercules, Saturn, the Spes Augusta, Liber Augustus and the god Temavus were venerated. Virgil was so impressed by it that he mentioned it three times: Eclogue VIII, 6, Georgics, book III, 475 and Aeneid, book I, 244. The Via Flavia passed through here and in the area of the mouth of the Timavo the amber road reached the Adriatic Sea, along which the precious fossil resin was imported from the Baltic since pre-Roman times.

Between Monfalcone and Trieste lies a spectacular castle overlooking the sea: Duino Castle, the private residence of the Princes of Thurn and Taxis. The castle has been open to the public since July 1, 2003. Be sure to plan a stop, it's worth it!

beautiful naturalistic street in ts