Innovative tour of Montalcino and Sant'Antimo in a vintage Fiat 500

Description

Monuments
8 Hours
*Guide
Views
Tablets
*Tasting

THE VILLAGE

The Medieval town of Montalcino, characterised by nearly intact city walls and by civil, religious and defensive buildings, is the result of the various transformation over time, up to the sixteenth century, when the village faces its golden age. It is placed on a hill that has been populated since the Etruscan age, while the first urban centre dates back to the IX century. “Piazza del Popolo”, “Palazzo dei Priori”, “La Fortezza”, together with the countless churches and parish churches, are among the architectural beauties to be contemplated.

THE ABBEY

Sant’Antimo is an ancient monastic complex that arises on a glade surrounded by centuries-old olive trees and wheat fields, a few kilometers away from Montalcino, next to the small centre of Castelnuovo dell’Abate. Populated for centuries by the Benedectine monks, according to the legend, the birth of the Abbey of Sant’Antimo dates back to the IX century, the age of the Sacre Roman Empire ruled by Carlo Magno, who is considered the founder of the Cappella Carolingia, which represents the current vestry.

HISTORY

Montalcino owes its fortune to the location on the old Francigena road, while it reached its current layout during the age ruled by the Sienese Republic. The history of the Abbey of Sant’Antimo, instead, is filled with legends: it is said that Carlo Magno and his retinue, coming back from Rome, were covering what would have become the Francigena road, at the same time that in the surrounding area and at the bottom of the mount Amiata, the plague was starting to spread. The emperor risked being infected by the plague, and so he carried out a vow for himself and his army in order for the curse to stop. After being granted a pardon, he founded the Abbey of Sant’Antimo. The rare aesthetic of this mystical place has even spawned another legend according to whom, Sant’Antimo was built thanks to fairies that, by carrying pillars on their heads and stones on their fingers, completed it in just one night.

THE ROUTE

Get on board of one of our vintage Fiat 500s and we will drive you through an interactive tour experience. Leaving from Siena and following the GPS instructions, you will cross Val d’Arbia and the famous Val d’Orcia. Interactive videos will drive you through the discovery of the Buonconvento village, an intermediate leg on the way there. After reaching Montalcino, you will be free to enjoy the timeless beauty of the Medieval village, to visit the Fortezza, driving through the narrow streets of the centre, while sipping a tasty glass of the Brunello wine, typical of the area, inside one of the affiliated firms. Once back on board of your Fiat 500, covering a distance of roughly ten minutes, you will reach the monastic complex of Sant’Antimo, covered in between vineyards and curvy countryside roads. After having visited the complex, on your way back, you will go across an unique and astonishing itinerary, through hills and woods between Val di Merse and Val d’Arbia, driving through the small, but suggestive Etruscan village of Murlo, before ultimately reaching Siena again.

*on request