3,300 - 2,200 B.C.Laces Menhir
This stele, allegedly crafted by members of the Remedello community, is made of very fine Vinschgau marble and was used as a support for the altar plan in the "S. Maria in Colle” church.
The menhir was discovered in 1992 during renovation works in the church. The stele (107 cm high, 77 cm wide and 12 cm thick) is missing parts of the head, feet and left shoulder. The first location of the menhir is believed to have been at the area of today's church on the hill and it could therefore be see from the distance.
These sculptures form northern Italy present male, female or asexual forms and are usually classified by their iconographic traits. The Laces Menhir, like the other 10 menhirs found in South Tyrol, is associated with the so-called "Adige valley group”, which is characterized by vertical stripes, allegedly representing a fringed cloak.
Steles of the male gender are also often equipped with triangular blade daggers (of the Redemello type). Another group is that from Lombardy’s Val Camonica, on the river Oglio, and from Valtellina (the Adda river valley).
Besides the iconographic traits typical of the Adige Valley (garland belt, hatchets, knives, clubs and bows), the Laces menhir presents decorative elements typical of the Lombard group (sun, deer, and stylized human figure). The menhir, built with the finest marble from the Vinschgau, is therefore an important demonstration of the millenary connection between the ancient Vinschgau, the Adige Valley and Lombardy’s northeastern valleys.
