Monteriggioni - Things to see

Monteriggioni is located along the ancient Via Francigena – the old route that linked Rome to the rest of Europe – an extraordinary place where art, history and territory all meet in a rare example of natural beauty.

For a thousand years, right back to the 11th Century, many travellers have crossed this territory, and it is for this reason that there are many churches, castles and medieval villages, originally built on Longobard settlements.
In a space measuring less than 70 square kilometres you can find an entire medieval and renaissance world where people live and work .

The particularly characteristic villages of Abbadia Isola, Strove and Colle Ciupi are typical rural villages of the ancient Tuscan feudal heartland. You can explore this unique corner of Tuscany by car, on foot or horseback, on a motorbike or mountain bike, to discover, hidden in solitary chapels and small churches, paintings of the Duccesca school or even the work of the famous masters of the Siennese school.
If you follow the routes of the ancient pilgrims you will discover a unique fusion of art and nature that makes this region unforgettable.

Situated along some of the most important ancient and modern roads, (the Via Francigena, utilised by travellers since 1000 AD and today along the Via Cassia and the new Firenze-Siena duel carriageway), Monteriggioni can be reached easily by car or motorbike, by mountain bike or on horseback, once there, you can start to discover one of the most beautiful natural parks in Tuscany.

When you enter this unique land, (recently awarded the “Bandiera Arancione”, the orange flag, by the Italian Touring Club in recognition of the uncontaminated surroundings and the good lifestyle that distinguishes this territory) you will see vast areas of vineyards and olive groves, lanes lined with cypress trees alongside ample woodland of oak and chestnut trees.
This has been a wine growing region from Etruscan times, while the cypress trees where introduced by the Romans. However it is only from the Renaissance period that we can trace the cultivation of the Olive tree on such a large scale