Volterra is one of the oldest Italian towns, a true treasure chest, a gem nestled in the heart of Tuscany, a suggestive combination of different epochs and styles that magically make it a witness to thirty centuries of history.
Powerful Etruscan lucumonia (city-state), wealthy Roman district, free municipality, Volterra shows the harmonious intertwining of the most refulgent epochs of Italian civilization with its numerous buildings, monuments, works of art, picturesque views, beautiful images representing the eternal language of a glorious past.
The Porta all’Arco gate, precious work of our ancestors, the marvellous Roman Theatre, the Baptistery and the Basilica-Cathedral (a centre for the diocesan believers), the Piazza dei Priori (with its palaces and towers confronting each other), the remains of the Acropolis, the Palazzo Pretorio and the Porcellino Tower, the ‘Enrico Fiumi’ Park, the Medici Fortress (with its prison), the San Felice and Docciola Springs are just a few of the beauties of Volterra: all of them are worth a thorough visit together with the rich Etruscan collections of the Guarnacci Museum and the masterpieces housed in the Pinacoteca Civica and the Museum of Sacred Art.
The vast panorama going from the Apennines to the Tuscan Archipelago and Corsica, the steep Balze (cliffs) threatening the town, the gentle slopes of the hills – arid and unpleasant in some places, fresh and fertile in others – are also part of this amazing land, where nature and brilliant men have competed with each other to create a unique masterpiece, transformed and brightened by the stone of light: alabaster (Eco-Museum of Alabaster).
Places with a view over the surroundings:
- Piazza Martiri della Libertà – in particular from ‘la Spalletta’ (southwards and eastwards)
- Piazzetta dei Fornelli (southwards and eastwards)
- Via Lungo le Mura del Mandorlo (northwards and eastwards)
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