| Added by |
 Alain Martineau
|
| General Description : | Rocca Calascio is a mountaintop fortress or rocca in the Province of L'Aquila in Abruzzo, Italy. At an elevation of 1460 metres, the Rocca of Calascio is the highest fortress in the Apennines. Built of stone and masonry exclusively for military purposes and intended only to accommodate troops and never as residence for nobles, the fortress overlooks the Plain of Navelli at one of the highest points in the ancient Barony of Carapelle. The fortress was started in the tenth century as a single watchtower; a walled courtyard with four cylindrical towers at the corners around a taller inner tower was added in the thirteenth century. The lower half of the fortress is built with distinctively larger stones than its upper half. It is believed that this feature was to make its base impenetrable to invaders. The fortress was never tested in battle. However, it was badly damaged in November 1461 by an earthquake. |
| Face value | 50 Lire |
| Catalog code (Michel) | IT 1704I |
| Catalog code (Scott) | IT 1412 |
| Catalog code | Yvert et Tellier IT 1436; Stanley Gibbons IT 1653; AFA number IT 1600; Unificato IT 1507; Sassone IT 1507 |
| Series | Castles |
| Place in series | 5 |
| Stamp colour | Dark blue green / red brown |
| Watermark | star IV |
| Stamp use | Definitive stamp |
| Issue date | 22/09/1980 |
| Designer | E. Vangelli |
| Print technique | photogravure |
| Printed by | I.P.Z.S. Rome |
| Perforation | 14 x 13ΒΌ Pettine |
| Height | 30.00 mm |
| Width | 25.00 mm |
| Catalog prices | No catalog prices set yet |
