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	HISTORY</div>
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	In Roman times the valley was crossed by the Flaminia consular road, which coincides almost perfectly with the current route of the highway; near the resort Posta Vecchia (adjacent to the hamlet of Calcinelli), it was probably located at the mutatio Octavo, a horse-changing station for postal convoys and couriers, as confirmed by the itinerary Hierosolymitanum and by the discovery of the Roman era masonry in 1937 (to date no longer visible).</div>
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	The true origins and its Saltara are rather traced back to medieval times: the first document attesting the presence of the name &quot;Saltara&quot; is in fact a papal bull of John VIII (872-882), which is cited Mansum Saltariae, belonging to the Abbey San Paterniano of Fano.</div>
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	The real village would then arose, probably from the beginning of the twelfth century.</div>
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	Numerous documents confirm that already in 1139 the monastery of Fonte Avellana owned the church of San Martino di Saltara (ecclesiam Sancti Martini de Exaltaria) and dates back to 1176 an act that defines Saltara as a castle (castrum). Since 1283 Saltara became subject to the municipality of Fano, who appointed a captain in charge of the castle, considered important defensive outpost of the Metauro Valley. Since then Saltara remained tied to the city of Fano and followed accordingly the historical fate, subject first to the Malatesta family and then to the State of the Church, directly dependent on Rome as part of the so-called libertas ecclesiastical. It eventually became the City in 1861, with the unification of Italy.</div>
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	MONUMENTS</div>
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	The castle</div>
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	Saltara are still well preserved walls of the castle with its imposing flight of steps to the historical center where the ancient covered market, a street covered porch used to house the market since 1489, by permission of the Malatesta lords. Among the buildings of the castle you can see the Town Hall and the Civic Tower bearing fragments on the facade of the Malatesta coat of arms with the winged dragon, emblem of Saltara.</div>
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	Of the 40 churches that once existed in this country, the most interesting today are:</div>
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	&bull; Former Church of the Source, according to a plaque commemorating the year of the restoration, 1595, was dedicated to the &quot;Divine Maria delle Grazie on the Source&quot;, it is also known as the Church of the Blessed Sacrament because ancient seat of the fraternity. Inside, there are important frescoes by Giovanni Antonio from Pesaro Bellinzoni depicting the Madonna della Misericordia and the Madonna Enthroned, dating from 1470 and a painting of the baroque school of the seventeenth century, representing the Last Supper.</div>
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	&bull; Sanctuary of the Madonna of the Villa with an imposing staircase and railing, built in 1790 to house a precious painting of Sebastiano Ceccarini, Our Lady of the Rosary of 1760. The interior of the octagonal church still hosts a valuable antique organ.</div>
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	&bull; Parish church of St. Peter Celestino contains a painting of the Barocci school depicting St. Sebastian, patron saint of Saltara.</div>
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	&bull; Convent of San Francesco in Rovereto, was one of the first Franciscan monasteries in the Marche, built in 1215, it is now used for spiritual retreats and cultural meetings. The church was rebuilt in 1434 in late Gothic style is covered with precious frescoes, a Crucifixion of the mid-fourteenth century, attributed to Allegretto nuncios, a Crucifixion dated to 1436 other works of Giovanni Antonio Bellinzoni.</div>
