San Gimignano

For centuries, in the Tuscany's heart,San Gimignano overlooked on a hill the Elsa's valley.
San Gimignano is famous all over the world for it's irregular tower's profile and the evocative squares.
The historical center is small but it preserves its unchanged characteristic architecture and offers fine foreshortenings. Runnings through the two most important streets, we arrive in "Piazza della Cisterna". It's a round square with ancient buildings and in the middle there is a cistern that, population, in the past used for rain-water.
The adjoining square is "Piazza del Duomo" with the highest tower of "Podesta's Palace" that you can visit together with the Civic Museum and a Picture gallery.
Very close to this square, but less important, there's "Piazza Sant'Agostino" with a smaller cistern and the church dedicated to the saint; inside there are thirteenth century frescoes and paintings.
Don't miss also the medieval fountains, Rocca di Montestaffoli and the walking tour along the city walls, that are the best places to admire the wonderful view on the countryside around San Gimignano.

History

San Gimignano was established in the Hellenistic period, its history begins around the X Century and it takes its name from a Bishop of Modena.
It developed considerably during the Middle Age thanks to the Via Francigena which runs through the town and it became a very frequented place reach of exchanges.
Symbol of this reachness were the towers built by mighty families of the town and they gave them their names; originally there were 72 towers but the number had fallen to 25 a the end of 1500 and today only 13 remain intact.
After many fights against neighbouring communes, in 1999 San Gimignano became a free commune but it suffered from internal strife between Guelphs and Ghibellines so in 1300 the Guelph Dante Alighieri visited the town and he took his speech in a room that take his name.
The terrible plague of 1348 decimeted the population and the town yelded under the Florence's rule.