Città di Castiglion Fiorentino

The Archaeological Museum relates the history of Castiglion Fiorentino and its territory through a fine collection of exhibits and an informative multimedia system. Archaeological finds include a striking reconstruction of a portion of the etruscan sanctuary roof (frontal cyma) and many others memorials of this culture. The archaeological area, winded along underground itineraries, reveals traces of the first Etruscan settlement (8th century B.C.) through to medieval times.

For further information about visiting hours consult the Service Guide

Address:
Via del Tribunale, 8
Tel. 0575.659457
E-mail: info@icec-cf.it

The Pinacoteca is situated in the Church of S. Angelo (12C), in the ex sacristy and in the so called «Nuns' Choir». It has a fine collection of works such as the French-designed Holy Cross (13C) and the bust of Saint Ursula (early 14C). Paintings include a Cross (early 13C), St. Francis by School of Margarito d'Arezzo (13C), a fragment of a Majesty by Taddeo Gaddi (c.1328), San Michele Arcangelo (c.1480) and the Stigmata of St. Francis (1486), works by Bartolomeo della Gatta.

For further information about visiting hours consult the Service Guide

Address:
Via del Cassero
Tel. 0575.657466
E-mail: info@icec-cf.it

Re-built with the Casseretto during the Perugians domination of the 14th century, the Cassero Tower, with its bell-gable defines an unmistakable skyline of the town. Through a wooden staircase, recently restored, you can reach the top (up to 35 m) and have a suggestive view of the old town and of the valleys of Val di Chiana and Val di Chio. Recent archeological excavations in the Cassero area unearthed evidence of an etruscan city wall (4th c.b.C), made up of large stones, and the remains of a city gate.

For further information about visiting hours consult the Service Guide

Address:
Piazzale del Cassero
Tel. 0575.659457
E-mail: info@icec-cf.it

The parochial museum is situated in what remains of the old Pieve of San Giuliano, nearby the new Collegiate church. Along with 15th-17th-century paintings and panels, we can admire a fresco by Luca Signorelli portraying the Mourning of Christ, and a Baptism of Christ of the della robbian school. There is also a valuable collection of objects from other churches, including the Dalmatic of Petreto (c.1450), the Madonna of Petrognano (13C wooden sculpture), an 18th-century Madonna, as well as a variety of jewellery, cloths and reliquaries.

Church and Cloister of San Francesco
The church of S. Francesco, with the beautiful romanesque-gothic sandstone façade, has a semplicity that is typical of the architecture of Mendicant Orders: a single nave with wooden supports, three apses with square plant and transept vaults. Note works of art include: Madonna with Child and Saints (1548) by Vasari; the Crucifixion by Poppi; the Vocation of San Matteo by Salvi Catellucci. Of note are a wooden Crucifix above the main altar by Patriarchi, a statue of Christ at the Column (1617) and a Cantoria (1546). The cloister with rectangular plan, rebuilt at the beginning of 1600, has a Tuscan-style double loggia. The frescoes in the lunettes by Pelliccione da Colle (1627) portray scenes of St. Francis' life.

Church of the Buona Morte
The present-day oratory was built in the 16th century. Inside, there is a single nave with a wooden, painted lacunar ceiling created by Niccolò di Smeraldo Salvi, who also carved the wooden statue of Christ at the Column (1617). The rooms above house a collection of objects of the Confraternita di Misericordia.

Church of Santo Stefano (San Lazzo)
Consecrated around 1350 and suppressed at the end of the 18th century, it is now used for cultural activities. Inside, there is a single nave showing a series of frescoes painted at different times and by different hands from the 1 4 t h t o t h e 1 5 t h centuries, some of which are dedicated to S. Stefano. There is a decidedly Giottesque monumental Crucifixion on the back wall, a M a s s a c r e o f t h e Innocent, attributed to Liberato da Rieti (c.1450), alluding to the nearby hospital which took them in, and S. Michele Arcangelo (c.1410-1420), patron saint of the town.

Church of S. Agostino
The originary complex is of the 13th century, while the bell tower was built in 1500. A high flight of steps leads from the square to the interior of the building. The sandstone façade is hut-shaped. Inside there is a single nave with the apse divided into three chapels, one of which contains fragments of frescoes of the 14th century depecting Saints. Noted works of art include: Madonna del Latte, a fresco of the 13th c.; the 16th c. Stone altar by Filippo Berrettini; the Annunciation by Niccolò Ghiori and Madonna in Gloria e Santi (1667) by Adriano Zabarelli. The walnut choir was carved by Francesco Orlandi in 1750.

Church of Gesù
The church was built in the middle of the 16th century, leaned to the old pieve (parish). The entrance is preceded by a beautiful loggia supported by six square stone pillars. The interior is characterized by late-Mannerist structure and decoration among which stands out the carved wooden ceiling (1615). Noted works of art include: a wooden Crucifix attributed to the school of Baccio da Montelupo (pre-16th century), a Last Supper (1586) by Francesco Morandini, known as Poppi, and a Resurrection (1599) by Francesco Vanni. The church also contains two fine examples of wooden sculpture: a Risen Christ (1620) by Niccolò di Smeraldo Salvi and a Dead Christ (1652). Next to the high altar «The Burial of Luca Buonomini», an half-length attributed to Pietro Tacca and dated 1638.

Collegiate of San Giuliano
This neo-classical style building contains numerous works of art: an Enthroned Madonna (late 13C) by Segna di Bonaventura, Enthroned Virgin and Saints (1486) by Bartolomeo della Gatta, Adoration of Child by Lorenzo di Credi, a polychrome terracotta depicting S. Antonio and another with the Annunciation, both of the Della Robbian school. In the sacresty, the polychrome marble tomb of Neri Dragomanni (17th century), coming from the Chapel of Rosario of Pieve Vecchia (Old Parish).

The so-called Vasari's Arcade
The construction of the Loggiato (arcade), attributed only later to Vasari, dates back to 1513. The loggiato's closed sides display coats of arms of Commissaries and Podestà in Della Robbia terracotta or sandstone, while the open arches reveal splendid views of the Val di Chio.

Town Hall
Built by the Perugians in 1375- 76, it was restored in 1489, a period in which the town council room was established and subsequently turned into a theatre in 1717. The stone balustrade for the flight of steps was constructed in 1512 and 1560. Its current configuration is a result of its restoration carried out in 1935. Around 1568 a stone tablet with linear measures was placed in the entrance-hall. The size of bricks materials had to standardize at it.

Palazzo Pretorio (Court House)
The Palazzo Pretorio was built in 1412 upon ancient structures, which had already been modified in medieval times. The building was used for court functions and as a prison. It is currently the premises of the Municipal Library and Archaeological Museum. The library, established in 1873, contains important manuscripts and books belonging to suppressed religious groups and legacies of private libraries.

Dragomanni Palace
Built at the turn of the 16th century, it is the result of merging a number of pre-existing buildings. It was the residence of one of the most illustrious families of Castiglion Fiorentino, who gave hospitality to the Grand Duke Cosimo II de'Medici. Inside, there is a small oratory dedicated to S. Nereo (18C) and in the upper rooms a precious historical archives with documents from the 14th century.

Municipal Theatre
The construction of the building, designed by engineers Olinto Perticucci and Paolo Bertelli, began in 1884 and was completed in 1911. Three levels with 44 boxes overlook the horse-shoe-shaped stalls, amounting to a total of 335 seats. The interior decoration is typically 19th-century, with gilded stucco work, pilasters with composite capitals, marbled plaster and a painted vault. The theatre was reopened in 2000, after the restoration, while the show-room was opened in May 2005. It has access by Via Dietro le Mura.

The walls
The settlement of houses outside the early sandstone walls of the Cassero required more and more enlargment of the city walls, composed of numerous turrets and of two main openings that are the present-day gates. The imposing walls, together with the remains of some towers, are still visible to this day from Piazzale Garibaldi from which, even if with some interruptions, they include the built-up area, the Colleggiata and the Monastery of S.Chiara.

Florentine Gate
From north-west the principal access to the historical center is through the Aretinian Gate, originally called Santa Maria and nowadays known as Florentine Gate. On the outside there is an anti-gate with a big ashlar portal. The internal gate is made up of three arches above which there is a niche displaying the coat of arms of S.Michele, patron of the city. From here begins the «Corso» that enables to reach all the most important places that is worth while having a rest.

Roman Gate
The south access to the city is through the Roman Gate, former Gate of S.Michele or S.Angelo. Damaged by the bombing but especially by the burst of mines (4th July 1944), the gate was reconstructed respecting its original forms even if it lost most of its medieval characteristics. A high niche contains a terracotta statue depicting S. Michele Arcangelo, patron of Castiglion Fiorentino; it was a copy of the original sculpture in polychrome wood, carved in the early 14th century, and currently on display in the Pinacoteca Comunale.

Church of the Rivaio
The church of Madonna of the Rivaio, a little outside the Florentine Gate, dates back to 1650. It has a fresco of Madonna with Child, contained before in a rural Majesty. Attached to the façade is an arcade. Inside, works of art include a Crucifix (1562) by Romano Alberti, known as Nero dal Borgo, and on the three side-altars paintings by S. Castellucci.

Church of the Consolation
Little outside the walls of the old town, going through S.Michele Gate, there is the Church of the Consolation, an octagonal building with a centralised plan, built in 1565. Its classic forms, both of the interior and of the exterior, have led the church's original design to be attributed to an important architect, perhaps Vasari. The church rises on the site of a small shrine containing a Madonna with Child (Majesty), attributed to the school of Luca Signorelli. The high stone altar, built by Filippo Berrettini, holds the Majesty.

Retina Parish (Cappuccini)
On the same street of the Church of the Consolazione, a little beyond, there is the old Parish dedicated to S.Ippolito and known from the 5th century as Retina Parish. The Romanesque complex is of the 11th century. Restoration works begun in 1512 after a period of decline. In 1581 the church was reconsecrated by the Capuchins with the name S.Maria degli Angeli. The 16th century arrangement of the church was modified in the middle of the 20th century, bringing to light the Romanesque apsed chapels; the interior is rectangular in shape with three naves that end in semicircular apses.

Sanctuary of the Bagno
Situated 2 km from the town, the Sanctuary was built in the 13th century to remind the Virgin's apparition to two young shepherdesses. The present building dates back to the end of 1800 even if there were later enlargements. The high altar is adorned with a polychrome terracotta statue depicting the Virgin with Child, attributed to Andrea Sansovino.

Montecchio Castle
The medieval history of the town is also narrated by the ruins of some castles, such as the Castle of Montecchio. It is located on high ground, close to town (2 km). Under rule of the Florentine republic, it was given to the captain of mercenary troops, John Hawkwood (Giovanni Acuto). The sandstone boundary walls, protected by eight watchtowers, the Casseretto, the 30m-high tower with its square plan, the tower-house of the «Tribunale», signs of dwellings standing against the walls and marks of an internal church, tell us a long story of wars and local life.