Pienza
Pienza is a small village in southern Tuscany in the beautiful valley called Vald’Orcia, and is located about 20 miles east of Montalcino and a 10 miles to the west of Montepulciano amidst gentle undulating hills and wonderful natural landscapes.
Pienza is most famous for production of cheese “pecorino”, is a tasty cheese made from sheep’s milk, renowned worldwide and very delicious.
Your tour of the city, starting from the main gate (Porta al Prato), through the main street (Corso Rossellino) which are full of small charming shops selling a large quantity of various types of pecorino, from fresh to aged pecorino, that you can taste together with a number of other typical local products, such as fine wines, spices, pici (handmade pasta) and so on.
After a little bit of shopping, we suggest you try one of the fantastic restaurants or typical osterie serving really exquisite local food. The name Pienza comes from Pope Pius II, who was born here, and it means the city of Pius. Pope Pius II is elected Enea Silvio Piccolomini in 1458, gave him the task to transform his birthplace, small place”Corsignano”, into the ideal Renaissance town.
Piccolomini is hired Bernardo Rossellino, the famous architect, to build Pienza in accordance with humanist urban planning concepts. The construction of Pienza started around 1459, and took about four years, creating a fairytale town, which has remained practically unchanged over the centuries.
The Cathedral, Piccolomini Palace, the Town Hall and the lovely central square (Piazza Pio II) were built in 3 years and represent the wonderful art of the Renaissance. Some scenes for famous movie Romeo and Juliet is filmed in Palazzo Piccolomini, in which it represented the location of the first encounter between the two lovers at the Capulets’ home.
