LAKE OF LECCO.
As early as 1860 Desor thought he had discovered indications of a palafitte in Lake Maggiore,[39] but this was subsequently disproved, and up to the present time no remains of these ancient dwellings have been found in this lake. The explanation of their absence in the larger lakes of Italy is to be found in the physical conditions of these glacial and rock-cut basins, which, owing to the depth of water and their rapidly-shelving shores, afford no holding for piles.
Stoppani, in his first exploratory tour, turned his attention to Lago di Lecco as, in his opinion, a suitable locality, and having found a group of piles half-way between the Bridge of Lecco and Malgrate stretching towards the western shore, he concluded this was "una bella palafitta a cui nulla mancherebbe per ritrarre perfettamente quelle della età del bronzo." The only resemblance of this supposed palafitte to those of the Bronze Age was the fact that the tops of the piles projected 1 or 2 feet above the lake mud, as no relics of any kind were found. Further researches have not confirmed the genuineness of this palafitte, and Regazzoni throws out the hint that the piles observed by Stoppani might be the work of modern fishermen, who are in the habit of inserting stakes for fixing their nets and which, among themselves, go under the name of serrade or gueglie. (B. 67 and 327, p. 70.)