Tuscany, Chianti, Culture
The development of agriculture and wine producing in the Chianti owes much to the system of sharecropping, 'mezzadria', that existed in Tuscany from the late Renaissance to post-WWII.
Museums, Historical landmarks, Southern coast of Tuscany
The only Etruscan burial site ever found by the sea, the necropolis at Baratti was also for three centuries one of the most flourishing centres of iron smelting and trade...
Museums, Culture, Arezzo and Cortona
While the Battle of Anghiari was one of the most talked about and frequently represented battles of its era, it was also one of the strangest. Yet Leonardo da Vinci's...
Hiking, Active, Museums, Garfagnana and the Apuan Alps
The sheltered medieval hamlet of Equi Terme sits on the slopes of the mighty Pizzo d’Uccello peak in the Apuan Alps. Named for the mineral rich spa that eased the...
Museums, Historical landmarks, South of siena, Culture
In the striking town of Pitigliano, high on its tufo ridge, a Jewish settlement begun in the 15th C. flourished to such a degree that the city was known as...
Siena and surroundings, Museums, Historical landmarks
As a city built on a hill, Siena had to confront the problem of where to find a reliable supply of water, particularly if under siege. Taking inspiration from the...
Museums, Historical landmarks, Garfagnana and the Apuan Alps
In the final years of World War II, German military reprisals against the Italian Resistance movement horrified Northern Tuscany with the brutal annihilation of a mountain village. Seventy-five years may...
Florence and surroundings, Museums, Culture
Neglected for centuries and belittled by the biographer Vasari, the Tuscan artist known as 'Pontormo' is a discovery worth making. Ignore the Renaissance bad press, seek out his works and...
Central Tuscany, Festivals and Events, Food and wine
Many Central Tuscan hill towns like Volterra, Casole d'Elsa, San Gimignano and Monteriggioni have impressive full costumed re-enactments of former glory days.
Central Tuscany, Florence and surroundings, Historical landmarks, South of siena
It is not a coincidence that many of the towns visited in Tuscany require an uphill climb, nor was it a fluke that early settlers headed for the higher ground....
