13:46 25-11-2025
The watchtowers of the Amalfi Coast: guardians of the shore
Discover the Amalfi Coast’s ancient watchtowers—often called Saracen towers. Why they were built against pirates, how they worked, and where to see them today.
When you look at photos of the Amalfi Coast, the eye is usually caught by bursts of color, steep cliffs, the sea and lemons. Yet tucked within that beauty stand ancient stone towers. They seem to have grown straight out of the rock, part of the landscape now, though once they had a very different job: guarding people against enemies who came from the sea.
Why these towers were built
Many centuries ago — roughly from the 9th to the 16th — coastal towns like Amalfi, Positano and Maiori were frequent prey for pirates. They arrived by ship, raided homes and took people captive. Locals needed a defense, and watchtowers began to rise.
Although they are often called Saracen towers, the Saracens — a medieval term for Muslim pirates — had nothing to do with building them; the towers were intended to protect communities from those very raiders.
How the system worked
Towers were placed on high ground — cliffs, hills and headlands — so each one could see the next. At the first sign of ships on the horizon, keepers would light a fire, send up smoke or ring a bell. The signal passed along the line, giving residents a little time to hide or brace for trouble.
They were built to last: thick walls, narrow openings and, in some cases, stores of food and water for days of sheltering inside.
What the towers looked like
No two towers were quite the same. Some were round, others square or even octagonal, their shapes reflecting when they were built and the hands of local builders. In Maiori, the Torre Normanna still looks formidable, planted on a rock right by the water. In Positano, the Torre Fornillo has survived in good condition and now adorns the shoreline.
Today, some have become private homes, museums or even hotels. Others sit abandoned, slowly crumbling under shrubs and grass.
What they are today
You can still see many of these towers — especially when traveling the coast by car or by boat. Some towns even include them in guided tours, revisit the past and show them to visitors.
They serve as a quiet reminder that life by the sea was not always serene. Once, people feared not the storm but the pirates. The towers still stand, gazing out over the water as if waiting for a warning to ripple down the coast again.