This itinerary takes in several fortified sites in the Monteriggioni area, evidence of the feudal and military past of these lands, some of which are mentioned in Dante.
The route can start from the small medieval borgo of Strove. A short distance away stands Castel Pietraio. Crossing the flat land around Abbadia Isola to the west, a spot where the remains of Etruscan tombs have been found, you soon come to the ancient fortress of Castiglionalto, or Castiglion Ghinibaldi, near Castellina Scalo. It was here that Sapìa dei Salvani, the woman mentioned by Dante in the XIII Canto of his Purgatory, reportedly witnessed the battle of Colle in 1269, rejoicing at the defeat of the Sienese, despite the fact she was from Siena herself. Retracing our steps, we must visit the castle of Monteriggioni, whose impressive outer walls, atop a green hill, are also mentioned in the evocative lines of Dante’s Inferno. Finally, south of Monteriggioni, there are the small castles of La Chiocciola and La Villa, which are beautifully nestled in an unspoilt landscape.
