Tuscany - Day 5
Day 5 started with us saying arrivederci to Murlo and our hosts, and driving to the Abbey of San Galgano.
San Galgano was a very important Cistercian abbey in the 13th century, but first a famine then the 1348 plague, and its double looting by mercenary troops (once by the famous English condottiere sir Paul Hawkwood aka Paolo Acuto) caused its decline: the monks moved to Siena and by the mid 17th century most of it was in ruins.
The place is rather atmospheric but, as Adrian remarked, it would have been even more so if the abbey's floor had been sown as a wild meadow.
After visiting the roofless abbey, we walked up - along a muddy and steep path -
to the chapel of Montesiepi built on the place where San Galgano died in 1181.
The chapel's dome is quite remarkable (it is modelled on an Etruscan tomb)
but the star attraction is the sword in the stone. The legend said that San Galgano - who belonged to a local noble family - after a dissolute youth, repented and thrust his sword into the rock forming a cross.
The sword and the rock are still there and visible under a Plexiglas cover;
and if anyone were ever tempted to play King Arthur, then there's a reminder in a side chapel of what happened to 3 people who tried to steal the sword while Galgano was away (there were devoured by a pack of wolves, which the saint had befriended) [recent carbon-dating of the arms confirms their 12th century origin but of course not the the veracity of the legend!].
Next stop was the little-known cloister of the church of the Santissima Trinità and Santa Mustiola at Torri, a little medieval village surrounded by walls.
Apparently it's Tuscany's only remaining Romanesque cloister with beautiful capitals; it was later altered with the addition of loggias on two levels, transforming it into a 3-tiered cloister.
It's a private property now and only open 2 weekday mornings.
On the way back from Torri, we briefly stopped to admire an old bridge, the Ponte della Pia of Roman origin but rebuilt in medieval times (13th century).
According to the tradition, the bridge is named after Pia de' Tolomei, a noblewoman from Siena who was also mentioned by Dante in his Divina Commedia. She was murdered by her husband in 1297 (thrown out of a castle window).
Legend has it that her ghost, attired in white, crosses the bridge on full moon nights.
Before the accident, I would have happily crossed the bridge myself, but now... well I don't feel confident enough to do it any longer!
The next and last stop for the day, was the hill town of San Gimignano, one of the most famous attractions in Tuscany.
I think it was my 4th visit there and Adrian's 2nd.
It is really beautiful and is surrounded by some lovely countryside.
We had a wander around
and then a very light lunch
Afterwards, we visited the collegiata to see the amazing cycle of frescoes,
and then I climbed the Torre Grossa (218 steps, 54 meters)
(I think I've done these two activities every time I've visited the town)
The views are just lovely
and I could also keep an eye on Adrian from up there! LOL
Once back on the ground, we went to La Rocca (now a public park), where there's a small museum of wine.
We sat outside with a glass of San Gimignano Rosato
taking in the views
We enjoyed the few hours we spent in San Gimignano. Af first, we were not sure as it was considerably busier than any of the other places we had visited on this holiday, but the town has such charm that you eventually surrender to it!
We then drove to Vicopisano a town about 30 minutes away from Pisa where we spent the last 3 nights of our holiday, in a lovely apartment on the second floor of a medieval tower (12th century) which was chopped down in the 15th century when the fortress was re-built.
Dinner at a local trattoria was rather yummy (although Adrian seems to be a of a different opinion in this photo! LOL)
The deconstructed millefeuille was to die for!!
Then it was time for bed.
Thank goodness for the stool to climb up to it!
San Galgano was a very important Cistercian abbey in the 13th century, but first a famine then the 1348 plague, and its double looting by mercenary troops (once by the famous English condottiere sir Paul Hawkwood aka Paolo Acuto) caused its decline: the monks moved to Siena and by the mid 17th century most of it was in ruins.
The place is rather atmospheric but, as Adrian remarked, it would have been even more so if the abbey's floor had been sown as a wild meadow.
After visiting the roofless abbey, we walked up - along a muddy and steep path -
to the chapel of Montesiepi built on the place where San Galgano died in 1181.
The chapel's dome is quite remarkable (it is modelled on an Etruscan tomb)
but the star attraction is the sword in the stone. The legend said that San Galgano - who belonged to a local noble family - after a dissolute youth, repented and thrust his sword into the rock forming a cross.
The sword and the rock are still there and visible under a Plexiglas cover;
and if anyone were ever tempted to play King Arthur, then there's a reminder in a side chapel of what happened to 3 people who tried to steal the sword while Galgano was away (there were devoured by a pack of wolves, which the saint had befriended) [recent carbon-dating of the arms confirms their 12th century origin but of course not the the veracity of the legend!].
Next stop was the little-known cloister of the church of the Santissima Trinità and Santa Mustiola at Torri, a little medieval village surrounded by walls.
Apparently it's Tuscany's only remaining Romanesque cloister with beautiful capitals; it was later altered with the addition of loggias on two levels, transforming it into a 3-tiered cloister.
It's a private property now and only open 2 weekday mornings.
On the way back from Torri, we briefly stopped to admire an old bridge, the Ponte della Pia of Roman origin but rebuilt in medieval times (13th century).
According to the tradition, the bridge is named after Pia de' Tolomei, a noblewoman from Siena who was also mentioned by Dante in his Divina Commedia. She was murdered by her husband in 1297 (thrown out of a castle window).
Legend has it that her ghost, attired in white, crosses the bridge on full moon nights.
Before the accident, I would have happily crossed the bridge myself, but now... well I don't feel confident enough to do it any longer!
The next and last stop for the day, was the hill town of San Gimignano, one of the most famous attractions in Tuscany.
I think it was my 4th visit there and Adrian's 2nd.
It is really beautiful and is surrounded by some lovely countryside.
We had a wander around
and then a very light lunch
Afterwards, we visited the collegiata to see the amazing cycle of frescoes,
and then I climbed the Torre Grossa (218 steps, 54 meters)
(I think I've done these two activities every time I've visited the town)
The views are just lovely
and I could also keep an eye on Adrian from up there! LOL
Once back on the ground, we went to La Rocca (now a public park), where there's a small museum of wine.
We sat outside with a glass of San Gimignano Rosato
taking in the views
We enjoyed the few hours we spent in San Gimignano. Af first, we were not sure as it was considerably busier than any of the other places we had visited on this holiday, but the town has such charm that you eventually surrender to it!
We then drove to Vicopisano a town about 30 minutes away from Pisa where we spent the last 3 nights of our holiday, in a lovely apartment on the second floor of a medieval tower (12th century) which was chopped down in the 15th century when the fortress was re-built.
Dinner at a local trattoria was rather yummy (although Adrian seems to be a of a different opinion in this photo! LOL)
The deconstructed millefeuille was to die for!!
Then it was time for bed.
Thank goodness for the stool to climb up to it!