Castelvetere Castle

Whoever takes a walk above the village of Ora (Auer) will get to see a ruin on the top of a hill in the recreation area of Castelvetere. Little remains are left today but its history dates back to 500 AD when a wall was built to protect it against the Teutons. Towards south you can still see the remains of this wall which are called "Kuchelen" in local dialect. The inside of Castelvetere Castle (Burg Castelfeder, in German) was presumably in great parts made of wood whereas the St. Barbara Chapel from the 6th century was demonstrably built of stone.

The first building was probably destroyed by a fire. In the 10th century - at the time of the Carolingians - the "upper castle" was resurrected for two centuries: The Lombard Tower in the western part dates back to that period and ruinous parts of the complex were rebuilt. Findings such as a disc brooch are attributed to that second period of Castelvetere Castle. Moreover the outlines of more than 160 buildings can be noticed, the origins of which have not been determined yet. From the 12th century on, the castle fell into decay.