Soncino is a historic town known mainly for the well-preserved castle of the Sforza family. There are also valuable technical monuments, such as the former silk spinning mill and the printing house, which dates back to the second half of the 15th century.
The city has a long and rich history that is associated with one of the most important Italian aristocratic families, the Sforza family. The greatest attraction of Soncino is the Rocca Sforzesca castle in Soncino, built in 1473. It presents a well-preserved defensive architecture from the turn of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its walls now house the Aquaria Archaeological Museum.
There is an old town around the castle with narrow streets and nice buildings. Numerous tenement houses and palaces have facades decorated with terracotta. Between them you can see the historic churches of San Giacomo with a former Dominican monastery, the Romanesque Assumption of Our Lady and the Renaissance Santa Maria delle Grazie.
The big attraction of Soncino are two museums related to technology and industry that developed here in the past. One of them is the Printers' House, where the Hebrew Bible was printed in 1488. Old printing machines and examples of old prints are gathered here. The Meroni silk spinning mill, which now houses the Silk Museum, comes from the 18th century. You can trace the entire production process of this valuable material here.
