Volterra

Volterra

Volterra rises from a plateau of alabaster-streaked hills in inland Tuscany, its medieval skyline of towers and the vast medieval Piazza dei Priori giving it a gravity that many more visited Tuscan towns lack. One of the great Etruscan cities, it retains traces of every era from the Iron Age to the Renaissance within its ancient walls.

History

Velathri, as the Etruscans called it, was one of the most powerful cities of the Etruscan League from the 8th century BC. The Romans took control in the 3rd century BC, preserving the city under the name Volaterrae and constructing baths and a theatre. In the medieval period Volterra became an independent comune, building the Palazzo dei Priori — the oldest town hall in Tuscany, completed in 1257 — and accumulating the towers that still punctuate its skyline. The city’s famous alabaster workshops, exploiting deposits in the surrounding hills, have produced fine carvings since Etruscan times and remain active today.

What to See

The Museo Etrusco Guarnacci holds one of the most important Etruscan collections in Italy, with over 600 funerary urns and the haunting elongated bronze figure known as the Ombra della Sera. The Piazza dei Priori is lined with medieval palaces. The Roman Theatre, visible from a belvedere near the walls, is remarkably well preserved. The Parco Archeologico contains Etruscan and Roman remains within a public garden.

Getting There

Volterra’s railway station at Saline di Volterra (16 kilometres away) is on a minor branch line from Cecina on the Tyrrhenian coast; connecting buses run to town. By car from Florence allow about 90 minutes; from Siena approximately one hour. Driving is the most practical approach.

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