Built 1550-1551 Phone +33 4 95 51 53 03 | Architect Giacomo Lombardo | |
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Address Presqu'île de la Parata, 20000 Ajaccio, France Similar Maison Bonaparte, Chapelle des Grecs, Calanques de Piana, Musée Fesch, Scandola Nature Reserve | ||
La tour de la parata aux sanguinaires
The Tour de la Parata (Corsican: Torra di a Parata) is a ruined Genoese tower located in the commune of Ajaccio (Corse-du-Sud) on the west coast of the French island of Corsica. The tower sits at an elevation of 55 metres (180 ft) on a rocky promontory, the Pointe de la Parata, to the north-east of the Îles Sanguinaires archipelago.
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The tower was built in 1550-1551 by Giacomo Lombardo. It was one of a series of coastal defences constructed by the Republic of Genoa between 1530 and 1620 to stem the attacks by Barbary pirates. The tower is 12 m (39 ft) in height and has a diameter of 7.3 m (24 ft) at the level of the roof platform. It contains two vaulted rooms, one above the other.
In Genoese documents the tower is called the Sanguinera di Terra. A similar tower which once sat on the highest point of the Grande Sanguinaire island was called the Sanguinera di Fuori or the Sanguinera di Mare. The Grande Sanguinaire tower was demolished in the 19th century when the existing lighthouse was constructed. A second small tower at the south-west end of the Grande Sanguinaire island has survived. In a Genoese document it is referred to as the torretta piccola (little tower). It is now called the Tour de Castelluccio.