The little town of Fregona on the slopes of the Veneto alpine foothills boasts one of the highest bell towers or campanili in this part of the world.

Unlike the majority of Tuscan bell towers those in the Veneto region have spires reaching up to the heavens like spiritual missiles (if such missiles could ever be said to exist). They stand out in the landscape and evoke those beautiful rural scenes that are such a feature of Venetian paintings.

Preparations for the construction of Fregona’s stupendous bell tower, can be traced back to the winter of 1869-1870 when, on the initiative of the vicar, Don Antonio Dalla Rosa, stones for its construction were gathered.  Difficulties arose, work was halted and the already accumulated material was used for other purposes, and partly stolen at night.

From 1880 onwards the erection of the bell tower proceeded without further hitches thanks to Don Andrea Tome, who had already shown his particular resourcefulness by repairing the parish church and parsonage seriously damaged by the earthquake of June 29, 1873. In order to facilitate the transport of heavy stones, the Don conceived a special type of wagon, called “car mal”,  pulled by two oxen. On 6 February 1881, Don Andrea initiated work on the campanile’s foundations with a depth of seventy and a width of forty feet.

On December 21st 1881, after more than ten months from the beginning of the excavations, everything was ready for the solemn ceremony of the laying of the foundation stone by Bishop Cavriani.

It took three years to complete the masonry of the foundations with its walls four metres thick.

The neo-gothic design chosen for the bell tower was by Fregonese Francesco Ciprian who was supposed to have been inspired by what he saw in Austria. Indeed, there is a resemblance  between the campanile and the main tower of Vienna’s town hall (seen in this photo):

The design included all those features that have made the campanile famous: an elegant belfry, bold piers and, in particular, the water-spout gargoyles at the summit.

Fregona’s bell-tower was eventually completed in 1909. However, the final spire, which was meant to crown it raising it to an additional height of forty feet, was never  built.

It was lovely to hear the three great bells ringing across the expansive hillscape (although I think those who live next to them might have different views) and consider the dedication of the Fregonese who willingly gave their time and efforts to the building of the campanile. I doubt whether such mediaeval-like collective efforts would be possible in the western world today.

There was no-one around to let us into the bell-tower. I would have loved to climb to its top and admire the view. Next time perhaps?

Meanwhile, the church cat and her three kittens looked on, unpeturbed by the gigantic scale of the campanile.