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Reggello and Vallombrosa

Reggello is the biggest town in the Tuscany and is situated on Pratomagno's hills from where dominates the Valdarno's valley. In the opposite side of Chianti's hills. From artistical point of view, we are in the richest part of Tuscany. Thanks for the presence of "Balze" the sudden precipices it becomes a unique view of the area. The "Balze" were at once the limits of a large lake that by passing time it created stravagants forms like moon's surface.
Leonardo da Vinci was so taken and fascinated from "Balze" that you can find them in some of his operas like "la Vergine delle rocce".

Piazza Potente of Reggello
Le Balze

Art and Monuments

The Pieve di San Pietro a Cascia was foundated between XII and XIII century.
Recently it has been fited out the Masaccio museum of "Arte Sacra" where it has found perfect place to conserve and exposition of pictures, sculptures and gold manufactures wich belong to all the historical churches of Reggello.
Two halls in the museum are destinated to the permanent exhibition of Trittico di San Giovenale, the first unestimable artistical and historical opera of Masaccio, discovered only in 1961.

Santa Margherita a Cancelli of XII century, restaurated in 1972 after a crash down, it is a great witness of the primitive image. The actual axpect of the Pieve Sant'Agata ad Arfoli (XII-XIII century) is because of the restoration in 1968. In the inside we can find an affresco of Raffaellino del Garbo (IX sec).
The church of San Clemente a Sociana has an elevated presbytery: In the inside there are two "tedofori" angels done by Mino da Fiesole and a marble bas-relief done by Antonio Rossellino.
The Portico of Pieve di San Pietro a Pitiana (XII century) is 1500'ds: appart from the bell-tower, original Romanesque operas are present in a large part of inside. Riarranged in the last century with a tabernacle in serena stone and two "Annunciazioni"; one has been done on the wood by Ridolfo del Ghirlandaio and the other one is a painting of Curradi. Also in the church of San Donato a Fronzano there are great Romanesque works.

Trittico of San Giovenale
Bell-Tower of Pieve San Pietro a Cascia

The Abbay of Vallombrosa

The Congregation of Vallombrosa was founded by S. Giovanni Gualberto of Visdomini whom in 1015 with some benedettini's monks escaped from the monastry of San Miniato because of contraddiction with the abbot of that monastry and the bishop of Florence. He closed in himself in Vallombrosa in a place called Acquabella aggregating with Paolo and Guntelmo, two monks of Settimo monastry that they were already living as an hermetic life. The goal of S. Giovanni Gualberto monastic inspirated of the benedettini rule was cenobitic type: the group was forced to conduct a communitery life, addressed to poverty, pray, hospitality and work. In the inside of the abbay we find 17th paintings and precious examples of gold manufactures.

Abbay of Vallombrosa
Natural Riserve of Vallombrosa