The archaeological site of Castel Pizigolo lies in the territory of Toano, not far from Monzone and Castagnola. Situated on the border between the provinces of Modena and Reggio Emilia, the medieval settlement stands on the left side of the Dolo torrent, in a strategic position for controlling the sulphur and salt water springs at the base of the hill that it occupies. Today, woods or meadows occupy the area. No standing remains are visible with the exception of a small section of medieval wall that was reused to create a small terrace on part of the hill. Topographically, the site appears to be made up of three distinct morphological elements. On a precipice above the Dolo there is a small summit entirely covered in vegetation on which a preliminary survey suggests a tower must have stood, as suggested by the presence of small bumps on the terrain. In a rearward position, in the direction of present-day Castagnola, there is a small irregularly shaped hill on which the only section of medieval wall is situated the. Between these two topographic elements lies a small flat intermediate area. Outside of this sector, the archaeological site presents an irregular morphology, characterised by small flat area, a number of terraces and walls, which lean heavily due to substantial erosion that has radically altered the area’s original topography. This was the first campaign of excavations carried out by the Alma Mater Studiorum, Bologna University, Department of History, Culture, and Civilisation; three areas were investigated. The first was on the hill with the visible wall, which was seen to belong to a building with several phases. The presence of burials aligned with one of its perimeter walls suggests it was a church, whose presence is known from the written sources. The finds date the religious structure and associated necropolis to between the 13th and 14th centuries. An earlier wall was also found, whose function and chronology are difficult to interpret at present. A second excavation area was opened on the level ground between the two hills, where three small trenches revealed the first medieval occupation levels on the site, datable to between the 9th and 10th centuries, as attested by fragments of cooking wares and soapstone. Lastly, the remains of a building (partially collapsed) were investigated, datable to the 13th and 14th centuries, which had been abandoned following a fire. Interesting finds included an iron spur and a small sickle in a very good state of preservation. Numerous sections of the mud-brick interior walls were found, which showed clear signs of the building technique and constitute an exceptional find.

Based on the results obtained during the previous campaign, work continued on the evaluation of the archaeological deposit, concentrating attention on the highest part of the site that is the steep-sided low hill delimited to the east by sheer rock faces riding above the Dolo torrent. The strategic position, together with bumps in the terrain suggested the presence of at least one buried structure. For this reason, it was decided to investigate the summit area by opening a 40 m2 trench in order to evaluate the quality and nature of the archaeological deposit. The excavations exposed the remains of a square tower 5.80 m wide, with walls c.120 cm wide, enclosing an internal space of c. 21 m2. The structure was built on a part of the site where there was no previous occupation. This part of the hill is quite narrow and characterised by an irregular rocky outcrop that was cut by the foundation trenches for the walls. The tower’s floor surface was created by levelling the natural substratum with a layer of beaten earth; several fragments of _opus_ _signinum_ suggest this material was used for at least one of the floors in the tower. Comparison with similar medieval standing structures makes it possible to propose a three-floored tower, with a raised entrance on the first floor. Based on the construction technique and finds, the tower was probably in use between the 12th and 13th centuries. The tower was abandoned and deliberately demolished within a relatively short period. From a practical point of view, this must have been carried out from the inside, removing materials that could be reused, and throwing the unusable material outside. This demolition can be dated to the 14th century, or early 15th century at the latest, as indicated by the finds from the various demolition layers.