Situated in the centre of the Orcia Valley, 491 mt. above sea level, Pienza was originally called Castle of Corsignano (Corsignano Castle). It takes its present name from Enea Silvia Piccolomini, the great Humanist who became Pope in 1458 under the name of Pius .

Pius II. it became  a papal seat and in 1462 it was an episcopal residence. Only in 1559 it came under the control of the Granduchy of Tuscany. The village is nowadays a little architectural jewel in  which

we can enjoy the sight of all those works which make of Pienza one

the most important towns of the aerea from an artistic point of view.

Pope Pius II started the reconstrution of the town in 1458, under the

supervision of the famous architect Bernardo Rossellini, a previous

disciple of Leon Battista Alberti. Starting from 1459 he brought

a radical change attending to create that utopian image of  an  ideal  town which was much longed for in the Renaissance. In three years he built « Piccolomini Palace « in the main square, together with the Dome, that holds works by  Vecchietto, by Matteo di Giovannni and by Sano di Pietro.

Next to the Dome is the Canonical Home the seat of Diocesean Museum, where you can admire paintings from the school of Sodoma, 14th and 15th century flenish-tapestry, wooden sculptures dating back

14th and Piu’s pluvial.The Town Hall and the Bishop’s Palace are   worth seeing as well. Out of the town walls yuo can enjoy visiting the «Pieve of Corsignano» in the Romanesque style, the Castle of  Spedaletto, the Monastery of S.Anna in Camprena and the Castle of Monticchiello which are only a few kilometres away.

From an economic point of view, Pienza is mainly an agricultural centre and is famous for its well know cheese , the so called Pecorino cheese. The aerea is included in the Artistic, Natural and Cultural

Park of the Orcia Valley which includes towns such as Castiglion d’Orcia, Montalcino, Pienza, Radicofani and S.Quirico d’Orcia.

This fundation wants to preserve the artistic heritage of the Orcia Valley. here you can admire the
 characteristic Biancane, white dome shaped

lands and many specimen of wild fauna.

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

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