Abbadia San Salvatore | Podere Santa Pia | The surroundings of Podere Santa Pia, a holiday home in southern Tuscany

Abbadia San Salvatore

Abbadia San Salvatore lies on the edge of extensive chestnut woods covering the eastern side of Monte Amiata and is one of the oldest monasteries in Tuscany. In the mediaeval period, it was an important station on the Via Francigena, the pilgrim route from northern Europe to Rome. The picturesque medieval borgo or village round the monastery has one of the best preserved mediaeval centres of Tuscany. It preserves its outer walls and streets intact, with medieval and Renaissance houses of locai grey stone. Abbadia San Salvatore is the largest town of Mount Amiata, surrounded by nature trails of extraordinary beauty and the thermal centres of Bagni San Filippo and Bagno Vignoni.

From an urban point of view three are the areas that characterize the village. The historic centre develops around the Abbey which was at a later stage surrounded by the medieval hamlet. Between the XIX and the XX century the new part of the village was built which includes the mining area and extends down the steep flanks of the mountain.

The historic and social events of the village are closely linked to the existence of the Abbey of San Salvatore, religious centre that played a fundamental role in the christianization of the mountain. The Benedettine abbey, which was immensely rich and powerful, was founded in 743 by the Lombard king, Ratchis, on the spot where he saw a vision. A short time after its foundation it became the most important abbey of Tuscany. At the peak of its temporal and spiritual powers in 1035 the abbey was rebuilt and reconsecrated by Abbot Winizzo. There followed a period of decline when it carne under the dominion of Siena in 1347, and evenlually was incorporateci into the Medici state in 1559. In the 16th century the single interior nave, a characteristic Latin cross, was whole modernized. Not to be missed is the visit to the crypt which is built on a Latin cross floor plan and has 13 small naves outlined by 36 columns all different from each other with capitals characterized by Romanesque sculptures. The monastery was suppressed by grand-duke Leopoldo II in 1783, and most of its treasury and archives were removed to Florence. A Benedictine community was reinstalled here in 1939.

We reach the medieval hamlet through the Porta Castello also known as Porta della Badia, so called because it linked the medieval hamlet to the abbey. Other attractions in the town include the medieval borough, the Palazzo della Potesta (15th century) and the church of Santa Croce.

Among the churches outside the village walls that are worth mentioning is the Madonna dei Remedi (17th century) where since the high middle ages a tabernacle with a painted madonna is considered to be miraculous. On the road leading to the mountain instead, we find the church of the Madonna del Castagno (16th century) built in place of a votive chapel dedicated to the Madonna. Outside the village, surrounded by chestnut trees, is the small oratory of the Chiesa dell'Ermeta which houses a carved wooden crucifix regularly worshipped by the local people.

Abbadia San Salvatore prides a famous traditional festival, coming back for a thousand years, Fiaccole della Notte di Natale.

Weekly market on the 2nd and 4th thursday of the month.

Comune

Museum of the Abbey of San Salvatore
Via del Monastero 42.
Works of sacred art of great value are displayed, among which a copy of the Amiata Bible reprinted in its original form.

The Abbadia San Salvatore Mining Museum
The mining museum, housed in the old clock tower building, hosts a rich collection of minerals, equipment, work tools and photographs that tell the story of mercury and of the communities whose stories are closely linked to it: from the Neolithic populations, the Etruscans and the Romans, to the modern age.

Parco Museo Minerario di Abbadia San Salvatore | Piazzale Rossaro (mining area)
It is located in the mining area and it recreates, through reproductions, documents and various items, the history of the mercury, the miners and therefore the history of the community that helped shape the identity of the Amiata territory.
Open every day: 9.30-12.30 and 15.30-18.30 from 15 June to 2 November and on public holidays.

Chiesa della Madonna del Castagno

Monte Amiata

Abbadia San Salvatore | Bagni S.Filippo, Balena Bianca

Bagni San Filippo is situated in a splendid position between the woods of Monte Amiata and the wonderful countryside of Val D'Orcia. It takes its name from St. Filippo Benizi, the prior of Florentine order of Mary's Servants. He retreated as a hermit in this Tuscan's corner in 1296 to keep away from being elected Pope at the Viterbo's conclave.
In this small hamlet huddled around its hot springs, even the eye gets relief from looking at the imposing calcareous formations of the Fosso Bianco, some sort of petrified cascade that, immersed in the forest, will leave you filled with wonder.
The archaeological researches were bringing to light that Bagni San Filippo was special estimated under the Romans as a thermal bath locality. Thermal baths were restored in the 16th century at the times of Cosimo I de Medici.
Its fame is particularly owing to the advantageous properties of its five hot springs reaching a temperature of 52º C. These sulphur waters have even changed the surrounding landscape which is white as a consequence of calcium's deposits. In many sites deposits have originated natural structures which look like waterfalls. The most important one is known as Balena Bianca close to Fosso Bianco, a stream running at Monte Amiata's feet in a succession of warm and white pools.

Vivo d'Orcia

The castle of Vivo d'Orcia boasts a long and fascinating history. In 1002 a hermitage was founded on this spot by camaldolese monks close to the source of the Vivo river - which means alive - a vital site as it also supplies the city of Siena with water. The monastery and the surrounding land were sold in 1534 to the later Pope Marcello II, who adapted the Castello del Vivo with the help of the famous renaissance architect Antonio da Sangallo, renowned for the palazzi he built in Siena and Rome. Since then the property has been in the family (the picture below shows the view onto the castle).

Next to the castle there is an arched stone doorway leading down to the hamlet which in the past housed the peasants and their families. An agricultural estate like this once used to be completely self-sufficient and provided itself not only with food and drink, but also had ist own carpenters, potters, weavers, metal forgers and glazers on the premises. In fact, hidden in the woods below the nearby Casa del Contadino you will find romantic ruins of what used to be the mill and the forgery in the 18th century. The small romanesque church of S. Marcello near Casa di Piero deserves a notice. The familiy chapel, also romanesque, stands in the woods nearby.

Palazzo Cervini near Vivo d'Orcia

Eremo del Vivo

Abbadia San salvatore-Piancastagnaio-Seragiolo | Sentiero 15 |11 km, 3 hours

From Abbadia, locality Villini, the pathway follows clockwise the Ring of the Amiata till the farm house Cipriana and, from this crossroads after another small climb it gets over the locality Le Pianaccie and climbs down towards the farm house Montarioso, then the locality Quaranta and it finally climbs down again along the left bank of the Minestrone ditch, till Pianacastagnaio.
From the locality Quaranta a detour leads in little more than 2 km and a hour on foot to Seragiolo. This stretch of the pathway is a short cut of the asphalt road (suitable for vehicles) joining the localities of Quaranta- Podere Pozzoni- Case Fioravanti.

Anello Amiata (Amiata's Ring) | (AA and path 10 and 11 on the map)

The ring surrounds the mountain essentially along the level curve of the 1200 m altitude and can be reached through many roads coming from Vivo d'Orcia, Seggiano, Casteldelpiano, Arcidosso, Santa Fiora, Piancastagniaio and Abbadia San Salvatore.
Through the pathways it is possible to reach the ring from many different directions: following the pathway number 10, starting form Arcidosso, with the pathway 11 from Vivo D'Orcia, with the pathway number 12 from Santa Fiora, with the pathway number 14 from Piancastagnaio and the pathway 15 from Radicofani.

The road winds up, except for some stretches of asphalt road, in a wide pathway, about 27 km long, which allows the wanderer to reach the ring in about 7 hours and without difficulty.
Starting from Abbadia San Salvatore, which is the nearest village to the Ring, and walking anti-clockwise from the seat of the Mine Museum, one meets the church of the Ermeta, then the Spring of the Acquapassante, the Refuge of Capo Vetra, a central crossroads on the Siena's slope of the Mount Amiata, the hillock Sasso dei Falchi, the Locality Madonna del Camicione, the hillock Pescina, the Capanna di Mecopapa, the Spring of the Monache, the Podere Cipriana and then once again the villas of Abbadia San Salvatore.
The pathway can be walked down on foot, but also on horseback, by bike (mountain bike) and, in winter, it turns into a cross-country ski slope.
The pathway offers the possibility of enjoying enchanting panoramas of the peak and of the valleys of the Orcia, Paglia and Fiora rivers and crosses wonderful beech forests, intermingled with chestnut trees, oaks and pine and fir tree reforestations. In the areas between the chestnut trees and the beech trees there are many native maples, hazels and hawthorns.
The excursionist crosses therefore many different landscapes and can enjoy the majesty of the maples, almost creating a boulevard in locality Poggio Lombardo or he ort she can pass under the magic vaults created by the beech trees in locality Aia dei Venti or enjoy, in winter, the sight of fairy snowed landscapes in locality Madonna del Camicione among the fir tree forests.

From Vivo d’Orcia all’Eremo to the heremitage and the spring of Vivo

Characteristics: not a particularly difficult itinerary, ideal even during the summer months, it almost completely
unfolds among woodlands.
Departure and arrival: Vivo d’Orcia
Length: ca. 5 km
Road surface: footpath and cart road
Height difference: ca. 200 m
Duration: 2 hours

The Castle of Vivo d'Orcia lies in the widespread Orcia valley in southern Tuscany and it boasts a long and fascinating history. The castle has been in the same family since 1534 and since then the property has not changed hands. Up till today the owner spend most of the summer months in residence in the Castello del Vivo.
An old stone bridge covered in moss with the name Ponte degli Innamorati (lovers' bridge) marks the entrance to this romantic property. To the right is the castle, which is still lived in by the by members of the family. To the left is an arched stone doorway leading down to the hamlet which in the past housed the peasants and their families.
A little apart form the castle stands a romanesque chapel - San Marcello - surrounded by old farmhouses which form a nice piazzetta.

From Vivo d’Orcia we start downhill on Via dell’Eremo toward the white-fir forest of Vivo d’Orcia, one of the last remaining in Tuscany of this kind. At the end of the road we cross the bridge over the Vivo stream passing under a stone arch that leads to the Borgo dell’Eremo.
Very few houses are clustered around the XVI century Palazzo Cervini and the church of San Marcello. We proceed going back to the stone arch without crossing the stream, turning left on a footpath that starts at a gate and some stone steps that climb up to the fir-woods.

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Trekking in the Maremma | Maps

Kompass nr. 653, Pienza - Montalcino - Monte Amiata, 1 : 50.000 or Edizione Multigraphic/Provincia di Siena, Val d'Orcia, 1 : 25.000.
For more information about walking tracks in and around Arcidosso, Il portale di Amiata Turismo (it).

There are a few brochures and books available in Podere Santa Pia, with more information and walking tracks: Amiata without haste... By foot (Itineraries), Amiata by bike (Itineraries) (see itinerary 9), Amiata senza fretta... a piedi (itinerairies 9.1 and 9.2).

www.parcoamiata.it preserves good hiking trails and maps.

Abbadia San Salvatore borders Castel del Piano, Castiglione d'Orcia, Piancastagnaio, Radicofani, San Casciano dei Bagni, Santa Fiora, Seggiano.

Karten / Stadtplan für die Website

Arcidosso, Casteldelpiano, Castell' Azzara, Cinigiano, Roccalbegna, Santa Fiora, Seggiano, Semproniano all belong to the area that is known as the Amiata Grossetana, that section of the mountain that looks over the Val d'Orcia to the North, and out over the Maremma to the West. This area is part of the "enchanted mountain" which, with its evocative natural elements, its colours, murmurings, rustlings and above all, silence, is one of the best preserved ecosystems in central Italy.
Olive groves, centuries old, cover the area, dating back to Etruscan times, have been mentioned in the chronicles and diaries of many notable celebrities and travellers in the past. The Archduke of Tuscany, Pietro Leopoldo di Lorena declared, in 1783, that he was astonished by the beauty of the olive groves that flanked the valleys of the river Vivo, while 12 years later, Giorgio Santi wrote in his travel notebooks "that the hill is adorned with beautiful olive groves nurturing olive trees of extraordinary age and size".

The oil obtained by the Amiata Olivastra is special for its yield and its low acidity content. "Olivastra Seggianese" has gained the distinction of DOP (Denomination of Protected Origin). The presence of this plant, limited by climatic and altitude factors, is due to the on site existence of a special cultivation the "Olivastra Seggianese" and of its pollinator, the "giogliaio" which is not to be found in any other Italian olive environment, a cultivation that is characterised by its considerable resistance at low temperatures.
The Seggiano Olivastra is reproduced by grafting. It is self-sterile and doesn't reproduce from seed. Only a few types of olives can fertilise it, the so-called "male" trees such as the "Frantoio", the "Moraiolo" and the "Correggiolo". Even then only 65% to 90% of its fruits develop successfully into trees.
In other areas of Amiata territory other olive varieties can be found, such as: Moraiolo, Leccino and Frantoio.; these varieties are widespread throughout Tuscany.
The area of production of Consorzio di Seggiano extends over the municipalities of Arcidosso, Castel del Piano, Seggiano, Cinigiano, Santa Fiora, Roccalbegna, Semproniano and parts of Castell'Azzara's territory.

The Consorzio - Consorzio Olio di Seggiano

Hidden away from mass-tourism, discover a piece of Italy which remains largely unchanged both nature and lifestyle-wise. The peacefulness of the countryside, the various unique villages and the friendly atmosphere will no doubt pleasantly surprise you!
Podere Santa Pia is a 4 bedroom holiday home, perfect for families, located in the heart of the Maremma. Monte Amiata is a huge open air museum, where nature, art and culture meet and happily merge. Here you will be totally immersed in the natural and cultural experience of the true Tuscan country life. The peacefulness of the countryside and the opportunities offered by the city achieve an excellent symbiosis. One can easily reach some of the most beautiful attractions of Tuscany, such as Montalcino, Pienza, Montepulciano and San Quirico d'Orcia, famous for their artistic heritage, wine, olive oil production and gastronomic traditions.
Around the property there are vineyards of Montecucco wine and olive trees, the famous "olivastra seggianese" out of which a superb olive oil is produced. This is the land where the DOC wines Montecucco and Brunello are produced. So, the surrounding countryside is the ideal area for an uncommon wine tour, visiting small farms producing wine and excellent extra virgin olive oil.
Not far from Cinigiano and clearly visible from Podere Santa Pia, is the famous Castle of Poggio alle Mura, also known as Villa Banfi and home to one of the most popular producers of Brunello di Montalcino D.O.C.G. wine. Set in 7100 hectares of land in the Montalcino area, Castello Banfi il Borgo is one of the most important wine producers in Tuscany.
The extreme simplicity of Tuscan cuisine is its strongest strength, as the flavours that emerge during the cooking process are vibrant and pure. A little known fact about Tuscan cuisine is that the French learned how to cook from their Tuscan counterparts when it was imported by Catherine de' Medici into the court of Henry II. The Tuscan style of cooking is richly flavoured and wholesome. The 19th Century Kitchen with open fire and wood burning pizza oven, Casa Santa Pia offers an upbeat atmosphere.
If you want to spend an unforgettable holiday at Podere Santa Pia and visit these beautiful medieval castles and wineries, visit our special offers page or contact us.

Siena, Duomo		Podere anta Pia, April		Podere Santa Pia, garden view in April