Montecchio Maggiore (Venetian:Montécio Majore) is a town andcomune in theprovince of Vicenza,Veneto,Italy. It is situated approximately 12 kilometres (7 miles) west of Vicenza and 43 km (27 miles) east of Verona; SP 246 provincial road passes through it.
The land of Montecchio Maggiore has been inhabited since the late Stone Age, though it was invaded and occupied many times. Two castles built about 975 are claimed to be the inspiration for theRomeo and Juliet legend. Luigi da Porto ofVicenza set the story here in his novel of 1552.
Museum Zannato, founded in 1922 by Giuseppe Zannato, its first curator. It has sections devoted to archaeological and paleontological finds. Some of these contain materials found in the late-Romannecropolis of Carpanè. There is also an important gemological section.
