Введение 10_THE MEDIEVAL BASTION_en

Located next to the current entrance of the Fortress, this bastion is, in reality, the front door to the medieval citadel, in which the palaces of power and the church of San Donato in Cremona were located.

The masonry, about 1.80 m thick, is made of squared sandstone blocks and carved in the corners, with a scarp wall turning vertical in the lower part. The rails allowing the closure of the external gate are still partially visible.

The construction features allow us to date this structure to the Middle Ages (late thirtheenth-fourteenth century. ).

The bastion had to be used also in the period following the construction of the first Medici Fortress (1506-1508), as evidenced by the presence of a cannon opening on the north side, evidently obtained after the spread of powder artillery, still unknown in late Middle Ages Italy.

It is not excluded that, as in other parts of the Fortress, the renovations of the early sixteenth century have exploited the pre-existing structures by making only partial changes depending on the needs. The realization of the embrasure is obtained by removing part of the medieval masonry, then encased internally with bricks. The spaces inside the bastion, on the sides of the door, were occupied by the soldiers of the garrison who evidently spent a lot of time there, as evidenced by the discovery of game pieces obtained from bricks cut out in a circular shape.

On the side pointed towards the interior of the Fortress are partially preserved the jambs of the access gate to the area of the Formwork and its threshold which, in all likelihood, identifies the medieval decking of the area. The center of the structure of the antiporta is characterized by the presence of a water drainage channel that discharges outwards, suggesting the presence of a ditch.