Centocelle tower, Medieval tower in Rome, Italy

Centocelle Tower is a medieval defensive tower in Rome with solid stone walls that rise from the modern urban surroundings. It has a compact, tower-shaped structure with thick outer walls typical of the defensive architecture of its time.

The tower dates to the late 12th century, when it formed part of a farmstead in the first phase of settlement in the Roman Campagna. Its name Torre di San Giovanni comes from the Lateran Basilica, which owned it in the late Middle Ages. From the 16th century it was known as Torre di Centocelle after passing to the Capranica family.

The name San Giovanni comes from the Lateran Basilica, which owned the tower in the late Middle Ages; it became known as Centocelle only in the 16th century, when it passed to the Capranica family. The toponym refers to the estate south of via Casilina, whose ruins of the imperial villa "Cento Celle" were demolished in 1927 for the airport runway. The tower is often wrongly called Torre Spaccata, a name belonging to another monument.

The tower sits in a residential neighborhood and is accessible on foot, though you will pass through modern city streets to reach it. Daytime visits work best since the details of the medieval structure are easier to see in natural light.

The tower is often wrongly called Torre Spaccata, a name that belongs to another monument in the area now known as Cinecittà Est. Its own name comes from the Cento Celle estate south of via Casilina, whose imperial villa ruins were demolished in 1927 for the airport runway.