 A stop on the ancient trade route leading from the Adriatic coast into the Eastern Alps already existed during the Celtic period about 500 BC.In Roman times, a road ("Via Iulia Augusta") led from the city of Aquileia to Zuglio and up to Plöcken Pass.After the Kingdom of the Lombards was conquered by Charlemagne in 774, a first fortified settlement was laid out under Carolingian rule.