Montecastelli Pisano

Montecastelli Pisano is a small medieval village which rises to the top of a Tuscany hill, at 503 meters on the sea level. Its position elevated, beyond an always ventilated climate and splendid view on Siena hills.

In the village you found a small market and far 1 Km there is a tipical tuscany restaurant "Trattoria Santa Rosa ", it reached in the evening of summer with a relaxed walk. From Montecastelli it's easy reach to arts and storicals cities like Siena, Volterra, San Gimignano, Monteriggioni.
Walks or excursions in mountain bike (of which the chartering is possible) are the ideal means to discover the beauties of the tuscany nature.

History and nature

Montecastelli, a medieval village, from the 1184 it belonged to the Pannocchieschi, bishops of Volterra, but already in the XIII there was a war for the control of the country with the Common of Volterra.
From the second half of the XIII sec. began the process of acquisition ofthe Castle from the Common of Volterra, until, in the 1319, Montecastelli was submitted to the City of Volterra.

Archeology

In the nearby of Montecastelli, is a beautiful etruscan tomb dug in the tufo stone and it has a short income cut in the cliff. The access to the tomb is to the west and has a rectangular opening that should had beeen closed had with a door, how demonstrate the holes where were applied the hinges. The interior, immense and rectangular, is m. 4,05x3,85. The height in the center is m. 2, at the walls m. 1,80. A sturdy pillar in the centre, which is rectangular, is m. 0,90x0,80 and rests on aflat base, high m. 0,30 and around the pillar m. 0,15, supports the vault.
The tomb has six cells disposed two by two on the wall's bottom and on the sidewalls. In the incoming wall the cells are not opened, but in the two angles, to the right and to the left, are two rectangular bases of m. 0,58x0,67, carved in the cliff and high from the ground approximately 20 cm., perhaps they served from bases to candels. The cells of the east and west walls measure m. 1,80 of height and m. 1,40 of depth; cm. 80 of depth are occupied by the funeral bed, high from ground m. 1,15.e m. 1.80.The cells of the bottom wall are smaller in width and only measure m. 1,70 instead of m. 1.80. This tomb re-enters in the type of the interment to room of the IV-III century.A more specific dating is not possible for the absencf objects.

From Montecastelli you can have a beatiful sight on the beautiful and imposing Rocca di Sillano or Silano.
The only castel is dated back to XI century, even if archeological founds mark an utilisation since etruscan and roman period. The first documents date back to 945 a.D.
In 970 the imperor Ottone I come in Volterra, and gave it to Buomparenti.
In 1120 it was under the power of the family Aldobrandeschi but in XIII century it was of the Lord palatino di Toscana Ildebrandino.
Several times the Bishop of Volterra and the Commmon of that city fought for it to excise taxes and taxes on the mining extraction of Branch and Silver.Then it was conquered by Volterra in 1250.
In 1300 it was fu in in possession of the Petroni of Siena that hold ituntil 1386, when it was conquered with the deceit from Martincione from Casole who sold it to the Republic of Florence for 1350 fiorini.When it went definitely under Florence, it was restructured as it appears by the great Giuliano architect from Saint Gallo. When the city of Volterra definitively was subjected to the republic of Florence with the Sacco di Volterra (1472), the Rocca was used after permanent garrison of bombers who resided there until XVIII the century.By now in state of abandonment. it was sold from the Granduca of Tuscany in 1781 to the family Acciai that held it generation by generation until the half of 800. In 1889 it was declared National Monument and it is currently of communal property after the donation made to the Town hall of Pomarance in the 1981 from the Family Paladini, last owners of the Rocca.