Tuscany Travel Guide | Castellina in Chianti

Castellina in Chianti

Castellina in Chianti is situated on a ridge along the Chiantigiana highway between Florence and Siena. The municipality of Castellina is entirely within the Chianti Classico wine zone. Castellina has an attractive old town centre marred by a grotesque formation of industrial silos and an abandoned warehouse, the latter scheduled to be re-developed or demolished at some future time. There is an intriguing covered road inside the town wall and Etruscan tombs in the vicinity.
Since the 13th century A.D. Castellina is part of the Lega del Chianti, meaning Chianti Alliance. This was a administrative and military alliance within the state of Florence. Because of its optimal strategic location which guaranteed the control of all surrounding roads, as well as the whole valley of the Elsa river, Castellina retained its military position. Proof of this is the existence of the imposing fortress, nowadays used by the local town govemment.
In the 15th century square defence towers were placed along the defence walls, which had only two gateways: one towards Siena and the other towards Florence – neither survive today. The higher part of town has a crenellated rectangular keep that was converted into the town hall in 1927 after undergoing substantial restoration works.
One of the most interesting elements of Medieval Castellina to survive remains Via delle Volte, however – a sunken walkway with narrow openings through the walls that afford magnificent views over the surrounding countryside.

The Via Ferruccio is the main street of Castellina and is home to a number of restaurants, some with outdoor seating. On the right-hand side to the north stands Palazzo Ugolini, formerly Palazzo Squarcialupi.

The Via delle Volte is a very impressive arched passage leading along the eastern wall.

Information Offices - Castellina in Chianti | Centro Servizi Turistic | Via Ferruccio 40
Weekly market on Saturdays | Via IV Novembre 8.00-13.00

Rocca Comunale of Castellina
	At the beginning of 15th century the town was transformed in a fortress, of which today remains the impressive Rocca. The Rocca is a massive building located in the main square with a fourteenth-century crenellated keep, from which you can enjoy a wonderful view. The main features of interest in this 15 C fortress, now the town hall, are the atrium, the council chamber, the Captain’s hall, and the courtyard and well. The Rocca, from April 21st 2006, hosts the Sienese Chianti’s Archaeological Museum. The museum, realized using innovative technologies, presents the history of the whole Sienese Chianti area, including the territories of Castellina, Radda, Gaiole and Castelnuovo Berardenga. Museo Archeologico del Chianti Senese (Archaeological Museum of Chianti Senese.) The Museum is located inside the fortress in Piazza del Comune. Opening Hours: The museum is open from Monday to Sunday with the following time: 10-18.30 Closed on Wednesday.
Chiesa di San Salvatore
	Church of San Salvatore, with an early 15th century fresco of Madonna with Child and a polychrome wooden statue of Christ from the same age, was rebuilt and extended after the Second World War, and is in neo-Romanesque style. The left nave contains a 17th century Annunciation of the Tuscan school.	Church of San Salvatore
Romanesque church of San Martino, at Cispiano
	From this church comes from a fifteenth-century bronze Cross ascribed to the Sienese artist Francesco D’Antonio, actually preserved in the parish church of Castellina in Chianti.
Church of San Giorgio alla Piazza
	Church of San Giorgio alla Piazza, housing a 15th panel from Cosimo Rosselli's workshop. It has romanic origin and is certified since 1084, it still has a part of the ancient façade.
Palazzo Ugolini-Squarcialupi
	Situated in the heart of the historical center of Castellina in Chianti, one can find the 15th century Palazzo Ugolini, formerly Palazzo Squarcialupi. The Palazzo has a wide façade with three ashlar doors overlaid with grey sandstone, and eight arched windows on the first floor in line with the square windows of the floor above. The façade bears two stone coats-of-arms belonging to the Ugolini family. The adjacent Palazzo Biancardi has three storeys and two tiers of windows with sandstone frames. Above the entrance is the Medici coat-of-arms of Pope Leo X (Giovanni de Medici, son of Lorenzo the Magnificent and pope from 1513 to 1521) who stayed here when passing through in 1513. In the past, the Palazzo Squarcialupi was a noble residence with agricultural activity and has recently been restored to become a hotel. Underneath the hotel, in the ancient vaults with its suggestive stone structures, are the antique wine-cellars.
Via delle Volte
	The Via delle Volte is a very impressive arched passage leading along the eastern wall, originally an ancient pomerium, a public area of archaic origin adjacent to the walls used for sacred and military purposes. Originally open to the sky, it was gradually covered in by private dwellings built right up against the walls when no longer needed as a defence.	Via delle Volte, a tunnel around Castellina in Chianti

Montecalvario
	The Etruscan Tumulus of Montecalvario, so called by a small chapel, the last station of the Via Crucis, built on the summit, is a structure of a circular diameter of about 53 meters, made up of four tombs. The tumulus dating from the seventh-sixth century BC represents one of the most interesting archaeological discoveries all over the Chianti. Built for an Etruscan aristocratic family, the tomb is especially interesting for the town-planning structure of the plan. In the tomb, steel and bronze decorations from a war chariot and a lion's head made of pietra serena were found. The Tumulus of Montecalvario is located just outside of the village along the road 222.The objects found in the Tumulus of Montecalvario, are exposed in the Archaeological Museum of Chianti Senese di Castellina in Chianti. Near the village of Fonterutoli is the Necropolis of Poggino with other Etruscan tombs.
Fonterutoli
	Fonterutoli was already known in Etruscan times and takes its name from the Latin fons rutolae or fons rutilant (clear spring). It was known as a halting place for food and rest on the road leading from Sienna via Castellina to Florence. Fonterutoli is a charming village, well worth a visit, and the Etruscan necropolis of Poggino is located in the nearby woods. Although very little is left of the original church and the castle, a fine villa, referred to as the Castello di Fonterutoli is located beside the piazza in front of the present church, and has been in the family Marchesi Mazzei since 1435.
Pieve di San Leonino in Conio
	San Leonino in Conio is a very old parish church that once had control of Castellina in Chianti. Now all that remains is the old Romanesque church, with an interesting interior, a beautiful apse and a small cloistered courtyard.
Pieve di Sant'Agnese
	The parish church of Sant’Agnese, on the main road from Castellina in Chianti to Poggibonsi, belongs to the diocese of Siena. The church has three naves, three apses and an imposing bell tower. The Pieve of Sant'Agnese houses a Madonna with Child by Bicci di Lorenzo.
	There are other Romanesque churches located in the area, including those of San Cispiano and San Quirico. The former, with its single nave and a small apse, is - like Romanesque churches in the Chianti region - built of typical ivory-coloured Albarese stone. The latter has a single nave, and a bell tower added later on one side.
San Donato in Poggio
	San Donato in Poggio is a mediaeval fortified village locatedon a hill (Poggio), from which it takes part of its name. In the past, the urban centre of S.Donato in Poggio was one of the principal fortified settlements of the zone. Today, only part of the fortified walls remain, including the two main gates (Porta Fiorentina and Porta Senese), the bell tower (the Campanone), the watchtower overlooking the valley (the Torrino) and a number of buildings that have preserved the original mediaeval structure of their towers, portals and arches, all constructed mostly of alberese stone. The town, founded in Roman times, was the principal fortification of the area, serving to defend the Roman road that led from Florence to Siena. The “castrum” (militaary fortress), which in the year 1033 belonged to the family of Count Guidi, became autonomous during the era of the communes. Lying between the cities of Florence and Siena, who were eternally vying for supremacy over the territory, San Donato was frequently the scene of important events, such as the gathering of the Florentine army in 1260, prior to the Battle of Montaperti against the Republic of Siena. The town was destroyed in 1289 by the Ghibellines of Arezzo and subsequently rebuilt with a typical protective wall encircling it. Portions of the outer wall surrounding the original town are still standing. Of particular interest are the Florentine Gate and the Sienese Gate, each with a scarp tower, as well as numerous turrets, including a bell tower and the so-called “little tower” which overlooks the valley. Within the oldest section of the inner town one can still admire the urban structure of the medieval burg, with narrow streets winding up and down among the thirteenth-century dwellings. Also in this central core of the town are the main town square (Piazza Malaspina), the public cistern, Palazzo Pretorio and the Romanesque church of Santa Maria della Neve. In the XII century, the S.Donato in Poggio castle enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy and became a free council. In 1218, the castle was definitively subordinated to the Republic of Florence, thereby taking on a considerable strategic importance due to its position on the most direct route of the Strada Romana, the one that linked Florence with Siena. The Florentines and the Siennese concluded a peace treaty at S.Donato in 1255 and the Florentine army assembled in this castle prior to the battle of Montaperti in which they fought the Siennese.	Pieve di San Donato
	The magistrature, situated in the town square, now known as Piazza Malaspina, was decorated with a XV century fresco, which may still be viewed. The building was reconstructed in large part after damage suffered during the last war. On the other side of the square were the public cistern, which was rebuilt in 1867, and the castle church dating from the XIV century. The late Renaissance facade of the Ticci Palace (which later passed over to the Malaspina family) united the houses and stores to the north and west of the square. Once owned by the noble Ticci and Malaspina families, since the nineteenth century it has belonged to the Pellizzari family. In the village outside the castle, there was a hospital for the poor run by the Augustinian monks, and subsequently run by the St. Maria della Neve confraternity. Around the year 1000, the Pieve di San Donato was constructed outside the walls of the castle. This church is one of the most typical examples of the Florentine Romanesque architecture. It has three aisles terminating in three semi-circular apses, that envelop the pre-existing bell tower. The façade is constructed of squared albarese filaretto, and inside there is a baptismal font in glazed terracotta by Giovanni Della Robbia (1513), a crucifix attributed to Taddeo Gaddi (1300 - 1366, a disciple of Giotto for 24 years).
About a kilometre from the Pieve di San Donato stands the late Renaissance sanctuary of Santa Maria delle Grazie a Pietracupa, built close to a tabernacle which housed a Madonna believed to be miraculous. The most remarkable complex of the territory is the Badia a Passignano, founded by the monks of the Vallombrosan order in 1049. Set within a stupendous landscape, the Badia a Passignano appears like a fortified hamlet, dominated by a belltower and surrounded by constructions of different periods. The abbey possesses an exceptionally rich archive (almost seven thousand parchments) and precious works of art: the frescoes by Passignano in the church dedicated to San Michele Arcangelo and above all the Last Supper frescoed by Domenico and Davide Ghirlandaio in the refectory of the monastery.The Sanctuary of Santa Maria delle Grazie is located in Pietracupa and houses important works by Domenico Cresti, known as "Il Passignano", and by Gamberucci.


Castellina in Chianti borders the municipalities of Barberino Val d'Elsa, Castelnuovo Berardenga, Greve in Chianti, Monteriggioni, Poggibonsi, Radda in Chianti and Tavarnelle Val di Pesa. Fonterutoli, Lilliano, Piazza, Rencine, San Leonino, San Quirico, Sant'Agnese are frazioni of Castellina in Chianti.


Castellina in Chianti is one of the principal towns in the Chianti wine region north of Siena.
Chianti, the area in which Chianti Classico wine has been produced for centuries, is that part of Tuscany that is bordered to the north by the suburbs of Florence, to the east by the Chianti Mountains, to the south by the city of Siena and to the west by the valleys of the Pesa and Elsa rivers. The area is traversed by the Superhighway of the Palio. It is a land of ancient traditions that was civilized in remote periods first by the Etruscans, who left many traces of their activity in the wine sector, and then by the Romans. In the Middle Ages, the cities of Florence and Siena battled for control over the zone. Villages and monasteries, castles and fortresses appeared during that period and many of them were later transformed into villas and country residences when times were more tranquil. It was then that spaces were cleared in the vast forests of chestnuts and oaks for the cultivation of vines and olive trees, an activity that progressively assumed major economic importance and established an international reputation. The first notarial document in which the name Chianti appeared in reference to the wine produced in the zone dates to 1398 and in the 17th century exports to England became increasingly frequent. With the agrarian revival in Tuscany in the early 18th century, the sharecropper system came to dominate Chianti and the landscape was enriched because of the different way in which work was organized. Many of the farmhouses, as well as the physical layout of the properties, which has survived, date to that period. From the end of the 19th century to the threshold of the third millennium, Chianti Classico wine has steadily reinforced its position in the affections of wine lovers throughout the world and thereby assured the prosperity and well-being of the region. Siena and Florence are the capitals of Chianti, which is shared between the provinces of the two communities. The zone amounts to 70,000 hectares (172,900 acres) and includes the entire territories of the communes of Castellina in Chianti, Gaiole in Chianti, Greve in Chianti and Radda in Chianti and parts of those of Barberino Val d’Elsa, Castelnuovo Berardenga, Poggibonsi, San Casciano Val di Pesa and Tavarnelle Val di Pesa. Forests occupy almost two-thirds of the zone. Oaks grow just about everywhere, while chestnuts thrive primarily on the eastern side of the district. Conifers are concentrated at higher altitudes, while stands of pines are common on the low hills to the south of Florence. Wild animals are not as numerous as they once were but it is still possible to observe pheasants, wild boar, hares and roebucks in the zone. The Chianti wine-producing area was delimited in 1932 by ministerial decree and the boundaries have remained unchanged since then. The decree described the district where Chianti Classico is produced as the “the oldest zone of origin,” thereby recognizing its primacy and according it a special identity. Even at that time, the Chianti territory, as it exists today, was recognized as the original production zone of Chianti Classico wine, a wine that to be distinguished from Chiantis created later and produced in zones different from the Chianti territory, had to be identified by the term “Classico.” Classico means, therefore, “the first” or “the original.” [Source: www.chianticlassico.com] Wineries Bartali, Belvedere di San Leonino, Borgo di Pietrafitta, Bucciarelli, Buondonno, Caggio, Campalli, Casafrassi, Casale dello Sparviero, Casanuova di Pietrafitta, Casina di Cornia, Castagnoli, Castellare di Castellina, Castello di Fonterutoli, Castello di Rencine, Castello la Leccia, Cecchi, Cennino, Collelungo, Concadoro, Fattoria Castello di Monteriggioni, Fattoria Tregole, Gagliole, Grignanello, Il Poggiolo, Il Villino, La Castellina, La Croce, La Mirandola, La Piaggia, Le Fioraie, Lilliano, Lornano, Montesassi, Nittardi, Piccini, Podere Fioraine, Podere Tramonti, Poggio alla Croce, Poggio Amorelli, Pomona, Querceto di Castellina, Ricudda, Rocca delle Macie, Rocca di Cispiano, Rodano, San Donatino, San Fabiano Calcinaia, San Giorgio alla Piazza, San Leonino, Sant’Agnese, Setriolo, Straccali, Tenuta Canale, Tenuta di Bibbiano, Villa Cerna, Villa Rosa, Villa Trasqua. Chianti classico \| The Chianti wine region Wines in Tuscany \| From Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino to Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Montecucco Consorzio del Vino Chianti Classico \| www.chianticlassico.com The Chianti Classico Wine Consortium has safeguarded since 1924 the world’s best known wine, promoting the denomination, its territory of origin and its history. The first of Italy’s grape-grower/winemaker consortiums was established on May 14, 1924, when a group of 33 producers gathered in Radda in Chianti to create a consortium to protect Chianti wine and its trademark of origin. In fact, famous Chianti wine was being imitated in other parts of Tuscany and it was necessary to set up an organization to prevent imitations and simultaneously promote a wine territory already delimited in 1716 by an edict issued by Grand Duke of Tuscany Cosimo III. Its trademark, which stands out because it displays the unmistakable image of the Black Rooster which guarantees the real Chianti Classico.