Castello Del Carretto is one of the four national monuments of Saliceto, together with the church of San Lorenzo (among the most important Renaissance churches in Europe, in Tuscan style), of San Martino (with a bell tower dating back to the year 1000) and of Sant’Agostino, both with fifteenth-century fresco cycles.

The origin of the castle is very ancient, on the ground floor there is a Romanesque hall with a large fireplace (west side) and a Gothic hall (east side) with high cross vaults, with a double Renaissance loggia in the center. The overlying noble floor is characterized by two elegant halls with large Renaissance fireplaces, frescoed with liberty motifs.

A mystery lingers in all these monuments and also in other secondary churches, as well as in ancient residences of the ancient village, in its eastern part built on a Roman camp. This mystery is the succession of esoteric symbols that cover a span of 8 centuries, starting from the nearby parish church of Monesiglio dell’Acqua Dolce. Symbologies partly linked to the Magdalene and partly to a mysterious proto Freemasonry lodge, already active in the area since the 12th century, still present in 1800.

In the castle, these symbols, which are the most interesting, are found in the Renaissance courtyard with its ancient frescoes. Here stood the ancient church of Santa Maria in the castle, of which there are frescoes dating back to three different historic periods.