Italy/Sambuca/Chianti/Tuscany/ Part 62/84
Welcome to my travelchannel.On my channel you can find almost 1000 films of more than 70 countries.
See the playlist on my youtube channel.Enjoy!
Sambuca:
The small town of Sambuca in Val di Pesa is documented from 1053, but due to bombing during WW II is now mostly modern and forms a centre of light industry. However, the ancient bridge and some nearby mediaeval buildings are still extant and worth noting as you pass through the area.
Ponte di Ramagliano, the mediaeval bridge over the river Pesa at Sambuca Val di Pesa. Bridge over the Pesa River in the frazione of Sambuca.
Emanuele Repetti in his Dizionario locates the village of Sambuca on the left bank of the Pesa and at the head of the bridge, which is called Ramagliano.
Historical documents regarding the Chianti village of Sambuca are few, but the castle of Romagliano, located here on the ancient Roman road, is mentioned in documents from 1053 and the earliest extant documents regarding the Sambuca bridge date to 1179. From an ecclesiastical point of view, Sambuca belonged to the parish of San Pietro in Bossolo. Thanks to its strategic and geographic location, particularly as a good crossing place over the River Pesa, Sambuca always managed to maintain a certain autonomy from the nearby castles of Semifonte and Barberino Val d' Elsa, but not from the Abbey of Passignano.
In the territory of Sambuca there was a small church dedicated to San Jacopo and called La Canonica. The church was located in position dominating the area near the Castle of Romagliano. It is mentioned twice in documents at the Abbey of Passignano, first 1166 (actum in castro de Sambuca) and then in 1168 when the Abbot of Passignano bought duo modiora et quattuor stariora terre que sunt in corte de Sambuco. In addition to these purchases, the same document refers to a further acquisition consisting of the piazza del Castello with the obligation to the tenant to build himself a house et habitare in la semper.Further evidence dates from 1215, when the Abbot of Passignano ceded part of a house in castro Sambuca. From the documents of the 12 C, it is noted that the Castle of Sambuca assumed considerable importance from its position at the intersection of the road leading from Florence to Sienna and then on to Rome and another road that led from the Chianti to the Val d' Elsa.The bridge of Romagliano, which still exists today and which carried the ancient Roman Via Regia over the River Pesa, already existed in the 12 C since it is mentioned in a document dated 29 October 1179. Subsequently, in June 1219 and 8 January 1295, in addition to the bridge, the existence of a village of Ponte della Sambuca is mentioned. Near the bridge even today there are buildings with architectural features dating from the 12 C and the 13 C. One of these buildings may have been used as a defense tower on the bridge and later was converted into a tavern, as is clear from the papers of the Capitani del Ponte.
On 20 September 1301, Sambuca is mentioned in a document which states a license was given by the Commune of Florence to two master masons to build houses in the village of Sambuca, indicating that the village was slowly developing. The same masons' license was confirmed on 5 January, 1302, and a number of houses were built along the two banks of the river Pesa, both upstream and downstream of the bridge Ramagliano. In 1415 the bridge was rebuilt and widened, paid for by a tax levied on the inhabitants of Sambuca and Tavarnelle by the Florentine Signoria. The bridge was strategically important enough to be drawn by Leonardo da Vinci on his map of Tuscany, now housed in the Royal Library at Windsor.
An additional bridge over the Pesa, called the Ponte Nuovo, was built at the end of the 18 C and was constructed two miles down the hill opposite the fabbrica where the Via Cassia currently passes. The old Ramagliano bridge was enlarged in 1843 but damaged during the Second World War and rebuilt in 1946-1947.
In common with other road and/or railway junctions that were severely bombed during the Second World War, such as Pontassieve and Poggibonsi, Sambuca developed as a light industrial area. Between 1953 and 1975 the new church in the centre of town was constructed and works of art from the old church were relocated here. Of particular interest are a small Gothic pietra serena tabernacle perhaps of the early 15 C Florentine school, and a Madonna with Saints by a late 18 C Florentine painter.
Exploring the lesser known side of Tuscany and Chianti
Does it get better than a week spent meandering the winding streets of Tuscany's historic cities, tiny hilltop towns, and Florence's storied bridges? I'll leave that up to you.
This video features footage filmed over several days in April, 2014 while visiting Tuscany as a guest of the Tuscany and Tavarnelle Val di Pesa tourism boards. The focus of the trip was not only to see what Florence had to offer (which is well known) but also what incredible opportunities can be found just outside Florence in the Chianti hills while drinking world famous Chianti Classico wines.
Learn more about my visit at
Locations featured in this video include:
Tavarnelle Val di Pesa
Tignano
Florence
Arezzo
Badia di Passignano
Palazzo Begliomini
Pieve of San Pietro in Bossolo
Pieve of San Donato in Poggio
Argento Firenze
Paganello Argriturismo / Fattoria Il Paganello
Osservatorio Astronnomico
Antinori Cantina / Vineyards
Del Giglio B&B
Poder in Chianti Cooking Classes
A special thanks as well to the Grand Hotel Minerva (Florence), Del Giglio B&B (Tavarnelle), and Il Viandante (The Wayfarer's Travel Lodge - fitting right!?) who hosted me during my visit.
Italy/Tavarnelle Val Di Pesa (Chianti/Tuscany) Part 54/84
Welcome to my travelchannel.On my channel you can find almost 1000 films of more than 70 countries.
See the playlist on my youtube channel.Enjoy!
Tavarnelle Val di Pesa:
Tavarnelle Val di Pesa is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Florence in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 25 kilometres (16 miles) south of Florence.
The main attraction of the territory of Tavarnelle is the Badia di Passignano (Abbey of Passignano), a monastery existing from the High Middle Ages.
Other sights include:
Church of Santa Lucia al Borghetto, part of a Franciscan monastery known from 1260. The church is an example of Gothic architecture.
Gothic church of Madonna della Neve, with 14th-15th-century frescoes.
Church of Santa Maria del Carmine al Morrocco (15th century)
Sanctuary of Santa Maria delle Grazie a Pietracupa, founded in 1596, with a Madonna image frescoed by Paolo Schiavo.
Pieve of San Pietro in Bossolo, a Romanesque church known from 990, housing works from Roman, Byzantine and Florentine schools.
Villa di Poggio Petroio, outside the town.
The pieve of San Donato in Poggio (12th century), in Romanesque style, with a basilica plan with a nave and two aisles and three apses. It houses a baptism shell by Giovanni della Robbia (1513) and a triptych by Giovanni del Biondo (1375).
The Pesa is a river 53 km long that traverses the Provinces of Florence and Sienna in Tuscany, Italy. The Val di Pesa - the Valley of the River Pesa, is the name given to the areas along the river and also includes much of its watershed.
The average altitude of the River Pesa basin is 286 m. The river is effectively a seasonal torrent in parts and remains without water in its final stretch during the summer.
The River Pesa arises from the confluence of several tributaries in the area located between the Badiaccia in Montemura (675 m) and Badia a Coltibuono (628 m) at the border of the provinces of Sienna and Florence. After descending to the south-west to the so-called Palace of Radda, the river turns to the north-west and maintains this direction, touching Sambuca in the municipality of Tavarnelle Val di Pesa and then Bargino and Cerbaia in the municipality of San Casciano in Val di Pesa, San Vincenzo a Torri in the municipality of Scandicci, Ginestra Fiorentina in the municipality of Lastra a Signa and finally crosses the town of Montelupo Fiorentino where it flows into the Arno.
Some of the towns and villages along the Val di Pesa that incorporate the name of the valley into their names are:
Tignano is a fortified hamlet whose church of San Romolo houses a terracotta tabernacle by Giovanni della Robbia.Wikipedia