Perched on a hilltop is the rather small town of Pienza. It is about a 20-minute drive from Montepulciano, so today my art history class did an excursion to this lovely place:
Known also as the "city of light" largely because of its city planning. It dates back to the 9th century but it was in the early 14th century that a large part of the town came under the control of the Piccolomini family. In 1405, Aeneus Silvio Piccolomini because Pope Pius II. A humanist, Pope Pius II had some great notions about city planning and urban life. One humanist principle at work in his redesign of the old Pienza was the belief that environment has a direct effect on people's ability to thrive. Thus, his idea of the "perfect city" was born. Bring on the grid, the open spaces, the human-scale buildings and piazzas. And the grid of the city must be such that plenty of light can come in. And there must be plenty of wells and an abundance of food:
This is the cathedral which is rather staid and Romanesque on the outside, and a bit of wild Gothic on the inside.
Looking out over the Val d'Orcia, which is a Unesco world heritage site, one ponders all things magnificent. AND, one enters a bar and has a lovely panino with cheese and olives.
Pienza has its own blue ribbon as well. This year they celebrate the 30th anniversary of the town being a Unesco world heritage site.
No comments:
Post a Comment