Volterra, jewel of Etruscan, Roman, Medieval art is one of the main tourist destinations of Tuscany, this is for the beauty of its monuments that comprise thirty centuries of history and for the working of the alabaster, a typical and traditional handicraft product of the zone. The history of the city is documented since the Neolithic period, with the first human settlements in the zone of Montebrandoni. The Etruscan, in the 7th century bC., founded on the hill of Volterra the city of Velathri; in 4th century bC. were built the great town-walls with a perimeter of more seven kilometers that enclosed beyond the true and own city also lands to pasture and cultivation. During this age, Volterra, reached the apex of the power, becoming one of the twelve lucomonie that formed the Etruscan nation, with a territory that extended from the river Pesa to the Tyrrhenian Sea and from the Arno river to the basin of the Cornia river.
Around the half of 3th century bC. Volterra was forced to submit to the crescent Roman power entering to make part of the italic confederation. In the 90 bC. Volterra became a roman town and its inhabitants obtained the roman citizenship, during the Empire the city was an important Roman municipium of the VII regio, the Etruria. With the fall of the Roman Empire it became an important fortified and episcopal center that controlled a territory that traced the borders of the Roman municipium and the Etruscan lucomonia. Between the 9th and 11th century in Volterra developed the civil lordship of the bishops, that extended on good part of the diocese.
In the first half of 12th century Volterra was organized in a free municipality, entity that contrappose to the episcopal power, for various time were sour contrasts between the two powers, later the free municipality prevailed, but very soon Volterra had to take into account with the emerged powers of Pisa, Siena and above all Florence. In this period were built the medieval town-walls in substitution of the Etruscan. Were built also the Palazzo del Popolo, then of the Priori, begun in 1208 from master Riccardo, was finished in 1257 under the Podestà Bonaccorso Adimari, in the same period also the Cathedral and the Baptistry, were object of great jobs of restructuration between which the enlargement and the external decoration of the facade of the Cathedral executed by Nicola Pisano in 1254.
At the beginnings of 14th century Ottaviano Belforti assumed the role of lord of the city. In 1361, the lordship of the Belforti, accused to have sale the city to Pisa was turned out from Florence, that took possession of the Fortress, the Volterrana republic, became subject of Florence. Between 1472 and 1475 Lorenzo il Magnifico, made build the Mastio of Volterra, the Medicean Fortress built in order to control the city and in order to constitute an advanced bulwark towards the senese territory. In 1530, in a last attempt to restore back the lost freedoms, Volterra rebelled to Florence in war against the Medici, forming an alliance with these, but it was sacked and newly plundered from Ferrucci. When definitively restores the Medici in Florence, Volterra lost its own independence, and became one of the cities of the Granducate of Tuscany of which it followed the fates.
USEFUL INFORMATION:
Weekly market in Volterra: Saturday
Weekly market,
every Saturday from 8.00 to 13.30.
Weekly market in Saline di Volterra: Tuesday
Weekly market,
every Tuesday from 8.00 to 13.30.
Tourist Information Office - Volterra
Piazza dei Priori, 10
56048 Volterra (Pisa)
Tel. 0588.86150 Fax 0588.90350
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