In an act of 1138 the presbiter Ildebrandus de bachereto appears among the names of an act with which the rights to the castle of Bacchereto are given to the Bishop of Pistoia: this is the first document that attests to the presence of a church in this area.  In the middle of the Duecento the rural town of Bacchereto included the areas surrounding the churches of San Giusto in Montalbano and San Biagio a Fusciano as well as the nucleus of the castle with the church of  Santa Maria.

The parish church was of popular origin:  the choice of the rector belonged to the people, but with the consent of the Bishop of Pistoia.  This church is mentioned in a 1219 Bull by Onorio III but it is missing in a previous Bull that of Innocenzo III in 1133.  In a fourteenth century document the town is described with these words: castrum cum muris, merli set aliis muris circumcirca .In the Liber Focorum of Pistoia this small town is divided by chapel and has 193 fireplaces (nuclear families) of which 9 nobiles, 30 pauperes e 5 nihil habet.

Ownership was contested between Florence and Pistoia and Bacchereto was assigned to Florence with Artiminio and Carmignano in 1329.

In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries the ceramic industry flowered and there were six kilns active here, one of which is still active today.  Unfortunately, aside from a few reports in the Archivio di Stato di Firenze, we have very little information about the artisans who worked here.  We know from their work that they altered their patterns to adapt to the style of different eras, often borrowing from the style of Montelupo or Florence.  The flowering of the ceramic industry in an area far away from the principle streets of communication is perhaps due to the presence of the monks in the close by abbey of San Giusto, who, recognized that there was quite a bit of good quality clay available in this area and introduced the art of ceramics to the town.

The parish of Santa Maria Assunta, overlooks the town.  It has a modest facade ties it to the  compagnia del Corpo di Cristo, and was realized in the first half of the eighteeen hundreds.  The campanile-tower emerges behind the church and is the only part of the castle walls that we can see today.  The classicized interior is the result of a remodeling done from  1835 to 1840. The ceiling was decorated by  Valinani. in the adjoining  Compagnia there is a beautiful canvas of the Teaching of the Eucarest which is an antique copy of the more famous painting by  Federico Barocci, which is conserved in Santa Maria sopra Minerva in Roma.

Before the town a narrow street leads to villa Banci, the farm of Bacchereto, which was restructured in the late 1800s,but was originally built in the Renaissance.  The Villa-farm has three sides and opens onto a courtyard,  from which you can see the late fourtee- hundred structure in the center and an interesting loggia in the corner of the side that looks onto the valley.  After going through the town one reaches Casa Toia,  a solid construction built between the thirteenth and fourtheenth centuries, tradition has it that this was the house of Lucia di Zoso,  Leonardo Da Vinci’s maternal grandmother and it is said that the young Leonardo spent a great deal of his youth here.

The first product to come to mind is Carmignano’s wine, with its world famous DOCG denomination, it comes from some of the smallest vineyards in Italy that provide excellent quality for their price.  Then of course there is the olive oil that is still made in the Etruscan tradition from hand picked olives.  And who could resist the skill and sun in a dried fig?    Chosen as a protected food by the Slow Food Organization for ins unforgettable quality this special treat was first described by the Roman agronomist Columella.

From Poggio to Malva, Artimino, Camaioni,  Comeana, La Serra, Carmignano, Santa Cristina a Mezzana,  Seano,  Bacchereto,  Colle e Capezzana, this area provides endless occasions to relax and try local specialities while to take in the incredible art and history of each town.

The area around Carmignano offers many opportunities to try its eno-gastronimic specialties.  The recipes that make up  our local cuisine have become synonymous with simple but elegant cuisine that everyone loves.

All things considered visiting wine cellars, villas and farms allows visitors to discover this wonderful territory and its history:  a suggestive experience that offers a unique view of this historic area.

• Wine
• Extravirgin olive oil
• Dried figs of Carmignano
• Figs and other fruits in Etruscan Times
• Carmignano’s Amaretti

The territory of Carmignano is rich in history and tradition.  Antique Etruscan settlements, Renaissance villas, historical buildings, antique churches and the Medieval Rocca mark the essential moments of more than a millenium of history.  The present is strongly tied to this wonderful history as the Quinto Martini Museum and Park and the Alberto Moretti Contemporary Art Museum testify.

Carmignano is in the heart of Tuscany, surrounded by a balcony of vineyards and olives, that stretch form Montealbano to the Florentine-Prato-Pistoia valley; a small but flowering town.

The splendid architecture that was brought to light during the 1960s revealed an extraordinary cultural and economic flowering of Artiminio in the Etruscan period. The vitality of Carmignano’s territory in the following centuries can be seen in the wonderful Medieval and Renaissance architecture, the ceramic Bacchereto production, and artistic masterpieces like Pontormo’s “Visitation”, and finally in the spaces dedicated to contemporary art.

The prestige of the well preserved monuments, the variety of natural resources, the vast landscape dotted by the surrounding hills, the quality of the wine and oil production are the true riches of Carmignano and they truly make a visit to this area in the heart of Tuscany unforgettable.

• Art and Culture
• Itineraries
• Local products
• Friends of the museum

To get in touch with all the vents on the Carmignano territory, please visit the website of the municipality

The art of pastry-making has its roots in the Medieval period and still maintains its high level of excellence.  The amaretti of Fochi have been proof of this since  1897.

The recipe for these unique cookies goes back to  the eighteen hundreds.  They were invented by Giovanni Bellini of Carmignano (who was nicknamed I Fochi for his impetuous personality).  His unique talent gave an original taste to the amaretti from Carmignano and continue to distinguish this cookie from amaretti produced elsewhere.  A cookie that is the size of a walnut, with an amber color and round form.  It is a little softer than other amaretti with an unforgettable flavour of almonds.  This small shop has been located on the site where a hundred years ago fresh pasta was made and conserves the original pasta maker which was run with the help of a mule.  The Bellini Cookie Factory quickly became the location for these wonderful sweets, the recipe for which has been handed down from generation of this family to the next.

• Wine
• Extravirgin olive oil
• Dried figs of Carmignano
• Figs and other fruits in Etruscan Times

Etruscans must have also known and consumed other fruits:

the pear, which has been found in the paleobotanic remains in Blera;

the cherry, introduced from Greece.  A very red and flavourful variety was imported around the I century B.C. by a certain Apronius, who originally came from Perugia;

the pomegranate, which originally comes from the south west regions of Asia and was probably introduced in Etruria by way of Carthage, which gave it its name Punica granatum. The oldest finding come from Tomb A in Casale Marittimo, dating to the antique orientalizing period (720-670 B.C.) The pomegranate was a symbol of prosperity and fertility, but it was also tied to the world of the afterlife:  Persephone, the daughter of Zeus and Demetra, was condemned to spending a third of every year with Hades, god of the underworld.

the hazelnut, relatively common in archaeological finds (for example, it has been found in the previously cited Tomb A in Casale Marittimo, Tarquinia and Blera), very nourishing and easily conserved;

the melone, which is believed to come from the Orient.  Seeds classified as pertinent to the melon or the cucumber have been found in Tarquinia.

Quaderno dell’archeologia didattica, Maria Chiara Bettini, editor.

Bibliographic Notes

A.M. Esposito, Principi guerrieri. La necropoli etrusca di Casale Marittimo, Milano 1999.

P. Giulierini, I piaceri della tavola: il mondo femminile e la cucina, in Larthia. La vita di una donna al tempo degli Etruschi. Atti del convegno, Firenze 2008, p. 27 e ss.

G. Saragosa, Alberi: etimologia, storia, miti e leggende, Avellino

• Wine
• Extravirgin olive oil
• Dried figs of Carmingnano
• Carmignano’s Amaretti

Si tratta di una coltura limitata, rara in Italia ed unica in Toscana, grazie alla particolare tecnica di lavorazione, tutta carmignanese, che utilizza metodologie non invasive ed in pieno rispetto con l’ambiente. La lavorazione viene infatti effettuata in modo tradizionale, secondo il sistema adoperato dagli antenati.

From the very distant past, in the Tuscan countryside and the fig tree was brought up in an almost exclusively promiscuous and its culture has always had a connotation of the family business. However, in some areas of the Province of Prato, this ancient Mediterranean plant has been cultivated and is still quite intense, often associate with vineyards and olive trees, for a production directed not only for family consumption, but also towards outside. This is the case of Carmignano, where he developed an industry for the production of dried figs, very popular in the markets.

The varieties grown in the past in this area were undoubtedly more numerous than those present today, so that from recent years 90% of the plants belonging to the cultivar “Dottato”, the white fig that lends itself very well to dryness, as well as having excellent organoleptic characteristics for consumption by fresh. In any case, a number of varieties is still preserved to this day, just for the character of family culture, then generally not subject to genetic improvement activities. Texts from www.ficusnet.it.

• Wine
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• The figs at the time of the Etruscans and other fruits
• Carmignano’s Amaretti

In all of the civilizations that the Mediterranean has given birth to, the olive is believed to be a sacred tree and the oil extracted from its fruit is used not only as a source of food but also for religious rituals:  the Egyptians considered it a gift from the gods, the Phoenicians brought it with them on their commercial routes, defining it “liquid gold”, the Greeks and the Romans used it for medicinal purposes and to burn in their votive candles, Hebrews used it to anoint their king, and Christians have always used it in their religious services.

Our city became an important area for the cultivation of olives in the XIII century and there were many laws made to protect this plant.

Today, the area of Carmignano can boast of its long tradition of oil presses, farms and a production of excellent olive oil that has brought our area the recognition of Toscano IGP with the added mention of “Montalbano”.

With over nine hundred hectares of land covered with olive orchards, the largest amount of land use after vineyards, oil is these hills’   primary product and it has been produced since the Roman Age. Our city along with others and the Province of Pistoia and Florence, is an area that produces extravirgin olive oil with the protected geographic denomination “Toscano”, to which our area adds “Montalbano”.  The olive trees, most of which are centuries old, are spread over the hills of Montalbano at an altitude  between 100 and 500 meters above sea level.  They are cared for with only the best agricultural practices like balanced pruning,  correct  fertilization and a careful tilling of the land.  The olive harvest is still done by hand, as the Etruscan tradition requires, then the olives are conserved in wooden crates until they are pressed.  The extraction,   in local mills and presses,  is done naturally, by centrifugation and decantation.  Water is the only additive used.  Extravirgin olive oil Toscano IGP “Montalbano” from Carmignano is characterized by its  beautiful color which varies in tonality from bright green to an almost golden yellow, with a fruitful aroma that unites the aftertastes of almonds, artichokes and ripe fruit; which highten its fruity flavor giving it a touch of spice.

Texts from www.ficusnet.it

• Wine
• Dried figs of Carmignano
• Figs and Fruit in Etruscan Times
• Carmignano’s Amaretti

The history of Carmignano is very long:  the Grand Duke Cosimo III was the first to define the characteristics of the “Carmignano” wine which he regulated in 1716. It is the first regulation of what we now call a geographically denominated product.  Today the consortium that has been created around this prestigous wine is the smallest of the consortiums that produce D.O.C.G. wines.

Wine reflects the spirit of the people who live around these beautiful vineyards.

Thanks to the sun that ripens the grapes that have hung from the green vines for over a thousand years, Carmignano has one DOCG (Product of a controlled and guaranteed origin) and four DOC (Product of a controlled origin) wines.

The best known and loved wines from our territory are two reds Carmignano DOCG and  Barco Reale DOC,  wines that come from the same vine  (like the Vin Ruspo DOC), but represent two different phases of its ageing, the second being sold younger than the first.

The very famous and refreshing rosé M Vin Ruspo DOC and the amber Vin Santo DOC, are both excellent when paired with Amaretti from Carmignano.

Vin Ruspo and  the excellent Vin Santo have boasted of a controlled denomination since 1982, while Barco Reale received this honor in 1994.  Carmignano , the smallest DOCG in Italy, had already received this title in 1990.

From the vineyards of this area, along with Chianti Montalbano DOCG that is produced without the addition of Cabernet, there are many wonderful white wines that are produced in a very limited number of bottles.

Texts from www.ficusnet.it

• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Dried figs of Carmignano
• Figs during Etruscan times and other fruits
• Carmignano’s Amaretti

Arrival: Boschetti Tomba;

Travel Time: 5 min. approximately; km: 1,5 .

The route can be visualized on Google Maps or downloaded as a  pdf  file (104 KB).

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Arrival: Comeana, Tumulo di Montefortini;

Travel Time: approximately 3 hours ; distance 8 km;

You can visualize the route on GoogleMaps

or download the details as a  pdf  file (49 KB).

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Arrival: Artimino  Archaeological Museum;

Travel Time: approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes ;

You can visualize the route on GoogleMaps

or download the details as a  pdf file (56 KB).

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Arrival: Pietramarina;

Travel Time: approximately 4 hours and  30 minutes;

You can visualize the route on  GoogleMaps or download the details as a pdf  file (874 KB).

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Departure: Artimino Archaeological Museum;

Arrival: Prato Rosello Necropolis;Poggio alla Malva; Porta del Barco Reale; Artimino Archaeological Museum ;

Travel Time: approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes excluding any stops along the way;

You can visualize the route on GoogleMaps

or downlad the details as a pdf file (95 KB).

See the route on Google maps

You can visualize the route on GoogleMaps
or download the details as a pdf file  (62 KB).

See the route on Google maps

You can visualize the route on GoogleMaps
or download the details as a pdf file (78 KB).

See the route on Google maps