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Chianciano
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WHAT TO SEE AROUND CHIANCIANO
Around Chianciano Terme, a multitude of villages and towns
boast a unique heritage of art, history and traditions. Andate
in esplorazione, percorrete strade e stradine lontane dal mondo
e fuori dal tempo: everywhere you will find plenty to see,
but also to taste and drink.
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Montepulciano
Known as the "Pearl of the Renaissance" for its architectural
and art treasures, Montepulciano
was a faithful ally of Florence against Siena. The humanist
Agnolo Ambrogini, nicknamed "Il Poliziano", was born
here.
The historic centre is accessed through the Prato Gateway,
part of the 13th Century city walls. From here the main thoroughfare,
or Corso, changes its name a few times as it climbs to the
hilltop, flanked with elegant 16th Century palaces. Here is
the elegant Piazza Grande, the city's monumental centre, with
noble palaces, the Town Hall and the Duomo.
The Municipal Museum and Crociani Picture Gallery houses Della
Robbia terracottas, a rich archeological section, ceramics
and paintings of the Sienese, Florentine, Roman and Flemish
schools. At the foott of the city,
the church of San Biagio by Antonio da Sangallo the Elder
is one of the masterpieces of the Renaissance. Worthy of a
visit are also the monumental cellars of the Vino Nobile growers.
Pienza
Listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site since 1996, Pienza
owes not just its name, but its existence to Pius II (Enea
Silvio Piccolomini) who, after being elected Pope in 1458,
decided to transform his native hamlet, Corsignano, into
a papal residence. Following the advice of artists and humanists,
he asked Rossellino to plan a brand new town according to
Leon Battista Alberti's precepts. In 1462 Pius II dedicated
the cathedral and opened the "ideal city".
The trapezoid square Pius II is overlooked by the Bishop's
Palace, the Public Palace, Palazzo Ammannati
and the Cathedral, unfortunately suffering a subsiding on
the apsidal end. The Cathedral Museum houses paintings of
the Sienese school, furniture, contiene dipinti di scuola
senese, arredi, gold and silver manufactures and holy vestments
including a
cope made for Pius II.
Monticchiello
This picturesque Medieval
walled town near Pienza is renowned for the summer shows
of the Teatro Povero whose amateur performers are the town
dwellers. The parish church is home to a beautiful Madonna
with Child by Pietro Lorenzetti. Housed in a former 18th Century
granary, TePoTraTos is an interesting
museum about folk theatre traditionions in Tuscany.
Montalcino
The town looms at the top of a hill rising between the valleys
of the Ombrone and Asso rivers and covered in the celebrated
vineyards yelding the famous Brunello wine.
The town hall dates from the 13th-14th centuries. The seminary
adjoining the St Augustin church
(14th C) houses the Municipal and Diocesan Museum, with works
of the Sienese school from the 14th and 15th centuries. In
1555 the pentagonal stronghold housed 650 families, who resisted
for four years a siege after Siena surrendered to the imperial
army. At the bottom of the valley, near the Francigena route,
the St Antimus Abbey was founded by Charlemagne and is home
to a religious community famous for its Gregorian chanting.
Chiusi
A powerful Etruscan town that reached the apex of its splendour
under the fabled Porsenna,
Chiusi rises at the south end of the Chiana Valley. Its Medieval
and Renaissance buildings rose on an Etruscan and Roman framework.
The town flourished again at the end of the 19th century
when the Chiana Valley was reclaimed from the marshes and
is now a thriving agricultural, commercial and manufacturing
centre.
By the Duomois the Cathedral Museum,
with manuscripts and choral books from the Abbey of Monte
Oliveto Maggiore. The recentently refurbished National Archaeological
Museum houses notable Etruscan and Greek exhibits, organizes
guided visits to the catacombs and
admits to the underground Porsenna's Labirynth.
Cetona
Cetona has two concentric rings of
walls (partly preserved) protecting the citadel. The
town has Etruscan origins, but the local museum documents
local human settlements dating from Stone and Bronze ages.
Visit the 12th century collegiate church,
with 15th century frescoes including an Assumption of the
Virgin attributed to Pinturicchio, and just outside the town
the former hermitage of St Mary at the Belverede,
affords superb views.
Cortona
Praised by the Roman poet Virgilio, Cortona was first an
Etruscan and then a Roman town, and later an important Medieval commune.
In 1411 it was annexed by the Florentines. Luca Signorelli,
Pietro da Cortona and Gino Severini were born here. As a
whole, the town still has a stron Medieval character. Its
heart is the Piazza della Repubblica, overlooked by the 13th century Palazzo
Comunale; opposite is the Palazzo del Capitano
del Popolo. The Palazzo Pretorio in the neighbouring Piazza
Signorelli houses the Museum of the Etruscan Academy founded
in 1727. The Duomo, rebuilt in the 15th-16th centuries
on the site of an earlier church, is opposite the Diocesan
Museum with a famous Annunciation by Beato Angelico. Outside
the town walls are the Renaissance church of the Madonna
del Calcinaio and the Celle franciscan hermitage.
Sarteano
The Castle of Sarteano rose in the 10th century along the
road between Chiusi and Siena,
in an area which had been inhabited for thousands of years,
now rich of archaeological remains. Two of the original
gateways into the town walls still stand. Plentiful thermal
springs feeed the spa pools.
San Casciano dei Bagni
An old walled spa town,
San Casciano dei Bagni boasts a Renaissance town hall and
the 16th century church of the Most Holy Conception,
with a painting by Pomarancio.
San Quirico d'Orcia
This is an ancient village between the Amiata and the Valdichiana,
rich with Medieval vestiges. In the old village center
you can visit the charming Romanesque Collegiate church,
with two beautiful doors and a triptyc by Sano di Pietro.
By the Porta Nuova is the 16th century italianate garden
of the Horti Leonini.
Bagno Vignoni
The unique square/pool of this spa town calls to mind the
Roman baths. The village rose at the foot of the Vignoni
castle, documented since the 11th century, not far from
San Quirico and the Francigena route. Illustrious characters
known to have patronized its spa are
St Catherine from Siena, pope Piu II Piccolomini and Lorenzo
the Magnificent.
Castiglione d'Orcia
An ancient castle on the side of the Amiata mountain and
dominated by the remains of the Aldobrandeschi Stronghold,
Castiglione boasts a Medieval church with paintings by
Pietro Lorenzetti, Simone Martini and Vecchietta. Worth a
visit are also the church of St Mary Magdalene (10th
C), and the nearby Medieval hamlet of Rocca d'Orcia.
Abbadia San Salvatore
The town rose around the San Salvatore Abbey,
founded in Longobard times and one of Tuscany's most powerful
institutions in the Middle Ages. Today one of the most pleasant
holiday resorts of the Amiata area, Abbadia has a recent
minerary past well documented in the local museum.
Further info...
www.parcodellavaldorcia.com
www.chianciano.turismo.toscana.it
www.terresiena.it
www.amiataturismo.it
www.prolocomontepulciano.it
www.portalepienza.it
www.palazzopiccolominipienza.it
www.monticchiello.it
www.teatropovero.it
www.tepotratos.it
www.prolocomontalcino.it
www.antimo.it
www.comune.chiusi.siena.it
www.comunedicortona.it
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