Val d’Orcia — Il paesaggio pittoresco della Toscana
La Val d’Orcia (UNESCO 2004, rif. 1026) è il primo paesaggio culturale italiano iscritto all’UNESCO non per i suoi monumenti ma per il suo paesaggio complessivo: le colline di argilla, i filari di cipressi, i borghi arroccati e le fattorie isolate che dipintori senesi del XIV sec. CE hanno inventato come immagine-tipo della Toscana — e che la fotografia del XX sec. ha diffuso nel mondo.
At a glance
Val d’Orcia Siena Toscana (43.0500 N 11.5500 E UNESCO WHS 2004 reference 1026 Val d’Orcia: the site (36,985 ha: the valley of the Orcia river (a right tributary of the Ombrone river) between Pienza (north-east), Radicofani (south), Montalcino (west), and Abbadia San Salvatore (east)): the geology (the “Crete Senesi”: the Pliocene marine sediments (3.5–1.8 Ma: when the Val d’Orcia was the floor of a shallow sea): the alternating layers of grey clay (“mattaione”) and white limestone give the hills their characteristic rounded form when eroded by rainfall (the “biancane” (the rounded bare clay badlands) and the “balze” (the sharp-edged eroded clay cliffs)); the history of the landscape (the “mezzadria” sharecropping system (the Sienese mezzadria: from the 12th century CE to 1964 CE: the Sienese commune assigned each podere (farm) to a mezzadro (sharecropper) who gave half the produce to the landowner in exchange for housing; the mezzadria created the characteristic landscape: the cypress windbreaks (the trees mark the property lines), the dirt roads (the “strade bianche”: the white clay roads that cross the hills), the isolated fattoria (the farmhouse complex: the “casa colonica”); the abolition of the mezzadria (1964 CE: the agricultural reform: most mezzadri left for the cities; the landowners converted the poderi to wine production (Brunello di Montalcino DOCG) and agriturismo (farm holidays)); the pictorial tradition (Ambrogio Lorenzetti (c.1290–1348 CE): the “Allegory of Good and Bad Government” (1338–1340 CE: Palazzo Pubblico, Siena): the first landscape painting in Western art since Classical antiquity: the Lorenzetti landscape shows the Val d’Orcia as it was in the 14th century CE: the wheat fields, the vineyards, the cypress groves, the walled cities on the hills)).
Key facts
- Pienza (1459–1462 CE) e come Pio II e Bernardo Rossellino hanno inventato la prima città ideale del Rinascimento in soli 3 anni: the Pienza project (the “ideal city” of Pienza: the patron (Enea Silvio Piccolomini (1405–1464 CE): born in Corsignano (the old name of Pienza) to a poor Sienese noble family; became Pope Pius II in 1458 CE; immediately commissioned the transformation of his birthplace into a model Renaissance city); the architect (Bernardo Rossellino (1409–1464 CE): the Florentine architect who was the assistant of Leon Battista Alberti (1404–1472 CE): Rossellino designed Pienza following Alberti’s “De re aedificatoria” (written c.1450 CE: the first architectural treatise of the Renaissance); the construction (1459–1462 CE: 3 years from first stone to completion: the fastest construction of a Renaissance city in history); the buildings (the 4 buildings around the central Piazza Pio II: (1) the Duomo (the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta: the unusual “hall church” plan (3 naves of equal height: the “Hallenkirche” style that Rossellino adapted from German Gothic: the windows bring light from all directions; the floor of the nave tilts toward the altar by 5 cm (the soil shifted during construction; Pius II and Rossellino agreed to leave the tilt as is)); (2) Palazzo Piccolomini (the papal residence: 1459–1462 CE; the hanging garden on the south loggia: the first Italian garden explicitly designed to frame a view (the view of the Val d’Orcia from the loggia: the “borrowed landscape”)); (3) Palazzo Vescovile; (4) Palazzo Comunale); the result (Pienza is the only Renaissance “ideal city” that was actually built (other ideal cities of the Renaissance remained on paper: Sforzinda by Filarete, 1460s CE; Palmanova by Scamozzi, 1593 CE, was built but never as “ideal”); Pienza was so expensive that Pius II spent his entire personal fortune on it))
- GPS (Piazza Pio II, Pienza): 43.0753° N, 11.6786° E; San Quirico d’Orcia (centro val): 43.0575° N, 11.5939° E
History
Dal Contado di Siena XIV sec. CE al UNESCO 2004 (the most precisely Val d’Orcia zone history: the Via Francigena (the medieval pilgrimage road from Canterbury to Rome: the Val d’Orcia section passed through Buonconvento → San Quirico d’Orcia → Radicofani: the pilgrims from northern Europe crossed the Apennines via the Passo del Termine (1,035 m) and descended into the Val d’Orcia heading for Rome; the via Francigena was the reason for the medieval fortifications in the valley (Radicofani castle (X CE), Castiglione d’Orcia, Montalcino): the Sienese commune controlled the road and taxed the pilgrims); the Medici acquisition (the Val d’Orcia was ruled by the Republic of Siena until 1555 CE (the fall of Siena to the Spanish-Medici forces): from 1555 CE, the valley was part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany (the Medici); the Lorgnano estate (the estate near Pienza that includes the famous cypress-lined road photographed as the iconic “Val d’Orcia image”: the cypress road is the “Strada Borghetto” near La Foce, Chianciano Terme)); the UNESCO inscription (2004 CE: reference 1026: inscribed as a “cultural landscape” (Category V: Protected Landscape/Seascape): the first Italian UNESCO inscription for an agricultural landscape rather than a monument).
What you see
Pienza centro storico (Piazza Pio II, Duomo inclinato, Palazzo Piccolomini loggia+vista Val d’Orcia), Montalcino (Brunello DOCG, Fortezza XIV sec.), Bagno Vignoni (piazza-vasca terme romane, Lorenzo il Magnifico), strade bianche + cipresseti (fotospot: Strada Borghetto vicino La Foce, Chianciano Terme) (the most precisely Val d’Orcia zone visit (2 days): day 1 (with car: essential, no public transport for the landscape): 9:00 Pienza (1.5h: Piazza Pio II + Duomo + Palazzo Piccolomini (€7) + il Pecorino di Pienza (the DOP cheese of Pienza: aged 60 days in terracotta; available in every shop in the corso)) → 11:30 drive south on the SP146 (the road between Pienza and San Quirico d’Orcia: the iconic Val d’Orcia view: the cypress-lined road at the farm “Agriturismo il Poggio”: best light 9:00 and 17:00) → 13:00 pranzo San Quirico d’Orcia (osteria) → 15:00 Bagno Vignoni (the piazza-pool: the hot spring that fills the central piazza instead of a fountain: temperature 52°C; the public baths (Parco dei Mulini: €5: the natural pools below the piazza); day 2: Montalcino (Fortezza (1361 CE: Sienese; €4) + wine tasting (Brunello di Montalcino DOCG: the most expensive Italian wine: 100% Sangiovese Grosso; minimum aging 5 years (7 for the Riserva); the Enoteca La Fortezza inside the Fortezza: 11:00–20:00)).
Practical information
- Come raggiungere la Val d’Orcia da Firenze, Siena e Roma senza auto (e perché l’auto rimane la scelta migliore), con il percorso fotografico per le colline del mattino: il trasporto (da Siena: bus LFI per Pienza (1h30; €3.80; 4 corse/giorno) o per Montalcino (1h; €3.20; 3 corse/giorno); da Roma Termini: Trenitalia → Chiusi-Chianciano Terme (1h45; €19 Frecciarossa) poi taxi per Pienza (15 km; €25)); l’auto (la Val d’Orcia si visita in auto: le strade bianche non sono raggiungibili in bus; noleggio auto da Siena (Hertz, Europcar: da €45/gg); le strade bianche (SP53, SP34, SP38): attenzione alla polvere e all’argilla bagnata dopo pioggia); la fotografia (il fotospot principale della Val d’Orcia: la “Strada Borghetto” vicino a La Foce (Chianciano Terme: 43.0753 N, 11.7014 E): il filare di cipressi in curva; luce migliore: alba (6:00–7:30 maggio-giugno) o tramonto (19:00–20:30): parcheggiare sul bordo della strada e camminare 200m; non calpestare i campi privati)
Getting there
Auto essenziale per il paesaggio. Da Siena: bus LFI per Pienza (1h30, €3.80) o per Montalcino (1h, €3.20). GPS Pienza: 43.0753/11.6786. GPS fotospot Strada Borghetto: 43.0753/11.7014.
Nearby
- Montepulciano — Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG, Tempio di San Biagio (Antonio da Sangallo il Vecchio 1518 CE) — 15 km (auto o bus LFI; Tempio di San Biagio: il capolavoro del Sangallo (1518–1545 CE): la pianta a croce greca con 2 campanili, il travertino estratto a 2 km: visita gratuita)
- Siena — Piazza del Campo e Duomo (UNESCO 1995 rif.717) — 55 km (auto o bus LFI 1h30; Piazza del Campo: il Palio (2 luglio e 16 agosto: la corsa di cavalli medievale); Duomo: Pisano 1220-1369 CE; pavimento con 56 pannelli di marmi intarsiati)
Gallery
Sources
- Wikipedia, Val d’Orcia; Pienza; Bernardo Rossellino; Brunello di Montalcino, accessed June 2026
- UNESCO, Val d’Orcia, WHS reference 1026, inscribed 2004
- Rinaldi, Rossana. Pienza e la Val d’Orcia. Florence: Scala, 2003
Find it on the map
See this place and what’s around it →📷 Diventa un fotografo di Cultural Heritage Online
Condividi le tue foto dei luoghi: restano pubblicate con la tua firma come autore. Più vengono viste, più ti fai conoscere — e presto un concorso premierà le foto più apprezzate.
Accedi o registrati gratis per aggiungere una foto