Tours in Toscana @en

Description

From the slopes of Monte Pisano rises the Certosa di Calci, or Charterhouse of Calci, which for centuries was the home of Carthusian monks. It is a remarkable complex of monastery buildings and a treasure trove of priceless art, and retains to this day an air of mysticism that unites earthly and heavenly realms.

The Certosa was founded in 1336 by Carthusian monks whose cloister rules obliged them to retreat to the most isolated places for prayer and meditation. It remains a very mystical place, and the architecture and spiritual symbols which adorn the monastery have a transportive effect, rendering the entire a structure a place seemingly outside of time.

The monastery’s function as a place for spiritual reflection was transformed in the 17^th and 18^th centuries, when it became a refuge of spiritual retreat for the Grand duke of Tuscany, and thus a space for both Carthusian religious dedication and all the refinement of the Florentine court.

Among the sections open to visitors are a sumptuously frescoed baroque church (used for communal prayer), monks’ quarters, cloisters, the rich Granducal forest, the Charterhouses’ pharmacy, and numerous chapels and refectories decorated with frescoes featuring sovereigns sharing their table with the monks. We aim to bring the history of these monks to life, and to reveal the secrets of this fascinating place just a few kilometers from Pisa.

Description

We invite you to visit the two fascinating towns of Bolgheri and Castagneto Carducci, situated against the panorama of classic Tuscan hills overlooking the Mediterranean sea, famous for their local history, gastronomic excellence, and timeless poetry of Giosuè Carducci.

Bolgheri, an enchanting medieval Lombard village, welcomes you with the castle of the Counts of Gherardesca, which comes into view at the end of the strikingly beautiful Cypress Lane. The Lane, nearly 5 kilometers long, is comprised of over two thousand cypresses, each hundreds of years old, and immortalized in the verses of Nobel Laureate for Literature (1906) and native son of the region Giosuè Carducci.

The expansive vineyards of the Bolgheri hills surrounding the Maremma valley have been cultivated for centuries and produce some of the most prize-winning wines in the world, notable among which are Bolgheri Sassicaia, L’Ornellaia, and all the other wines of the Bolgheri Superior D.O.C. A few kilometers away lies Castagneto Carducci, established ca. 1000.

The village sits at the foot of another castle belonging to the Gherardesca dynasty, the undisputed rulers of this territory and from which they dominated both land and sea, where the green Tuscan hills reflect against the blue of the Mediterranean sea. Wandering among the captivating lanes and alleyways of Castageneto Carducci one witnesses a thousand years of Gherardesca family history.

Description

We’ll take you on a trip of discovery of Volterra, the fort city which for millenia has perched, a high hill, closed within its walls, to dominate the surrounding countryside. Passing through its Etruscan gates and traveling along its medieval alleyways somewhere between mystery and legend, we will uncover the history of this place suspended in time, like the light trapped inside its gleaming alabaster relics.

Since the dawn of history Volterra has had its roots in stone. Known in ancient times as Velathri, the Etruscan city was founded between the 6^th and 7th century B.C.E. It was one of the twelve city-states which comprised the Etruscan League, a political-religious alliance between cities of this extraordinary and mysterious people, and whom inspired the Romans more than is commonly believed. In fact, Volterra’s historical roots go much deeper, to the very beginnings of Villanoviana civilization circa the 9^th century B.C.E. Volterra’s exceptionalism derives not simply from the fact that it has stood for millenia, but that one can still clearly decipher distinct historical periods from its monuments: Etruscan, Roman, and Medieval, and important Renaissance traces remain.

We will guide you through the winding lanes of this city of stone, whose medieval – its walls, Cathedral and Baptistry, the Piazza dei Prior, in which one finds the oldest municipal palace in Tuscany – remain perfectly preserved. Passing under the towering Arch Door (Porta all’Arco), erected by the Etruscans over 2000 years ago, from high on the city walls we will survey the Roman theatre and complex of thermal baths. Volterra’s alabaster industry is particularly remarkable, and many “luminous stones” are displayed view in various artisan workshops in the Ecomuseum of alabaster and in Palazza Viti. Volterra moreover is home to several museums such as the Guarnacci Etruscan Museum, the Museum of Sacred art, and the Pinacoteca which house important works of art, among which the Deposizione of the Croce by Rosso Fiorentino is of particular interest.