Pitigliano

Pitigliano is a 3,867 inhabitants Italian town located in the southern part of the province of Grosseto in Tuscany, close to the border with the region of Lazio. It used to be known as little Jerusalem because of the size and importance of the Jewish local community. Pitigliano is the largest town that compounds the area named Città del Tufa: Pitigliano, Sovana and Sorano. Both Sovana and Pitigliano are placed on the list of most beautiful villages in Italy.

How do I arrive to Pitigliano?

  Pitigliano isn't easy to arrive because it's far from cities and it has a small population. 

• Train: the nearest train stations are Orbetello and Albinia ones (both 50 km far from Pitigliano).
• Bus: there are buses from Pitigliano once every day to Sovana (aprox. 15 minutes) and to Siena (aprox. 3 hours). There are also daily buses from Sovana to Sorano (aprox. 15 minutes).
• Car: if you rented a car, Pitigliano can be reached from Orbetello (aprox. 1 hour), Grosseto and Pienza (aprox. 1 hour 15 minutes), Montalcino (aprox. 1 hour 20 minutes), and from Siena (aprox. 2 hours) too. It's very close to the region of Lazio so it can also be reached from places like Viterbo (aprox. 1 hour).

History

Pitigliano was already a place frequented and inhabited since the time of the Etruscans. The first news of Pitigliano appears in a bull sent by Pope Nicholas II to the St. Pietro and Paolo co-cathedral in Sovana in 1061, where it is indicated as a place under the jurisdiction of the family Aldobrandeschi. In 1293, Anastasia (daughter of Countess Margherita Aldobrandeschi) married Romano Orsini, contributing Sovana County as a dowry and moving the county seat to Pitigliano. Orsini family ruled Pitigliano County for centuries, defending them from continued attempts to subjugate (Siena and Orvieto first, and later the Medici from Florence). It was not until 1574 when Nicolas IV Orsini ceded the fortress to the Medici family and in 1604 Pitigliano was annexed to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. However, the Medici were not interested in the fate of the city, which soon fell into decline, and only in 1737, the year in which the grand duchy passed to Lorena's house, Pitigliano experienced a slow economic and cultural recovery. Today it is a well-known tourist destination, thanks to the peculiarity of its historic center.
 

What can I visit in Pitigliano?

Some of the most important locations in the town are Via Roma, Via Zuccarelli and Piazza della Republica, where finding the fountain Fontana delle 7 Cannelle. Pitigliano has a very nice walk (8 km) to Sovana with some vie cave that date back to the Etruscans.

These are Pitigliano's main attractions:

• Pitigliano Jewish Museum and Synagogue (10-13 and 14:30-18 Sun- Fri from Apr to Oct; 10-12:30 and 15-17 Sun- Fri from Apr to Oct; ): museum that shows the rich but almost extinct culture of Pitigliano's Jewish quartier (La Piccola Gerusalemme), the little version of Jerusalem. There's a beautiful 16th century synagogue with very rich decoration, a mikveh (Jewish ritual bath), a kosher winery and butcher's.
• Palazzo Orsini: palace that belonged to Aldobrandeschi family and then, after a marriage, Orsini one, who modifierd it and turnt it into a elegant Renaissance residence. It's one of the most representative buildings in Pitigliano. Here it's located Pitigliano Diocesan Sacred Art Museum (10-13 and 15-18 from May to Sep; 10-13 and 15-17 from Oct to Apr; 4€ /3€  adults/ reduced), museum with paintings, sacred objects and sacred vestments worn by the Bishops of the Diocese; and Pitigliano Archaeological Museum (10-18 from May to Sep; 10-16 from Oct to Apr; 3€ /2€  adults/ reduced), that displays finds from the excavation campaigns in the areas of Sovana and Poggio Buco.
• St. Pietro and Paolo Cathedral: 13th century duomo with a nice 18th century façade and its inner part dates back to the 16th-18th century with works by Francesco Vanini, painter that belonged to the Sienese school. It was modified under Niccolò III Orsini and from 1845 onwards, it became into cathedral.
• St. Rocco Church: oldest church in town (its origin goes back to the 12th-13th century) rebuilt in the 14th century by Giovanni da Traù il Dalmata. Its simple Renaissance façade hids on the church's inner part many frescoes.
• A. Manzi Outdoors Archaeological Museum (10-18; 4€ /2€  adults/ reduced): open-air museum with reconstructions of two houses (circular hut model made with clay and straw) from the 12th-11th century BC and an Etruscan necropolis with some tombs.
• Not far from Pitigliano (25 km west) it can be found Termas de Saturnia, an important spa resort.

Palazzo Orsini

Pitigliano Synagogue

Fortezza Orsini

Not far from Pitigliano it's located Sorano, 3,464 inhabitants small hill town close to Lenter River. One of its most spectacular points is Fortezza Orsini, a 14th century castle, renovated by Niccolò IV Orsini in 1552, one of the most important examples of Renaissance military architecture. Here it's located Sorano Civi-Archaeological Museum (10-13 and 15-19 Tue-Sun from Apr to Sep; 10-13 and 14-17 Sat-Sun from Oct to Mar; 5€/ 3.50€  adults/ reduced), small museums with archaeological remains that explains the local history. In the highest point of the town it can be found Masso Leoldino (8-20), fortified panoramic terrace by order of Gran Duke Leopold carved into tuff stone. Only 5 km outside the town it's placed Vitozza Archeological Area (10-19; free), cave settlement site considered the largest and most important of its kind incentral Italy with over 200 caves.

Tomba Ildebranda

Going 8 km north from Pitigliano and 10 km west from Sorano (still on its municipality) you can find Sovana, a 460 inhabitants beautiful village founded by Romans (in a place already inhabited by Etruscans) and which used to be the center of the county under the Aldobrandeschi family. One of its most important touristic points is Città del Tufa Archaeological Park (10-19 from Apr to Oct; 10-17 Sat-Sun from Mar to Nov; 5€), park with some of the most important Etruscan tombs in whole Tuscany (having 4 different routes to discover them); some of the highlighted ones are Tomba Ildebranda (that still haves rests of columns and carved stairs) and Tomba dei Demoni Alati. But, despite its size, this small village has many others to offer, like the following ones: St. Pietro Co-cathedral (9-19 from Mar to Nov; 10-16:30 from Dec to Feb; 8€ /6€  adults/students), Romanesque style duomo whose origin dates back to the 8th to 9th centuries, seat of the episcopal diocese, diocese of Pitigliano-Sovana-Orbetello (since 1986); St. Maria Church, Romanesque style church with the most ancient pre-Romanesque ciboria; Museum of San Mamiliano (9-18; ), museum with a collection of old coins and Etruscan objects; and Aldobrandeschi Castle, remains of the castle of this family (which was dismantled in the 17th century.  

There is a ticket (10€) that allows you to visit Città del Tufa Archaeological Park, Fortezza Orsini and its museum and museum of San Mamiliano. 

Where can I eat in Pitigliano?

 There are some very nice restaurants in Pitigliano like Tuscan traditional restaurants La Rocca (Piazza della Repubblica 92) or Il Tufo Allegro (Vicolo della Costituzione 5). In Sovana the best idea to eat is Taverna Etrusca (Via del Pretorio 16). In the way between Pitigliano and Grosseto there's a very prestigious winery, Terenzi (Localita' Montedonico in Scansano).

Posted in: Europe,Italy,Tuscany