VAL D'ELSA, SIENA, TUSCANY

SAN GIMIGNANO

San Gimignano: “the city of the beautiful Towers” lies in Tuscany, 56 km south of Florence and 38 km north-west of Siena. In the Middle Ages the city was an important stop for the pilgrims who were going to Rome along the Via Francigena. The patrician families that controlled the city built approximately 72 house-towers (some high until 50 m.) as symbols of their wealth and their power. Although only 14 house-towers are stil survivors, San Gimignano maintains its medieval atmosphere. The city preserve also various masterpiece of the Italian art of the 14th and 15th century between which works of Benozzo Gozzoli, the Ghirlandaio and the Pollaiolo. In 1990 the historical center of San Gimignano has been inserted from the Unesco in the list of the world-heritage patrimony of the humanity.

USEFUL INFORMATION:

Weekly market San Gimignano: thursdays
Piazza Duomo, Piazza della Cisterna 8.00-13.00

Information Offices - San Gimignano
Ufficio Informazioni Pro Loco
Piazza Duomo, 1
tel. +39 0577 940008 - fax +39 0577 940903

WHAT TO SEE IN THE AREA:

Siena, Monteriggioni, Staggia Senese, Colle Val d'Elsa, Volterra, Castellina in Chianti.