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Address

Via Soccini 53, 53022 Buonconvento (Siena)

Buonconvento

When you say “Provincia di Siena” (The Siena district), wonders of all kind instantly goes through your mind: culture, landscape and gastronomy are the strong points of the province.
This beautiful territory is crossed by the Via Cassia, one of the most important consular Roman road, built to connect Rome and Florentia (present Florence).
During the Middel Ages, due to the bog in the Valdichiana ( the valley has an allusion origin and lies between the provinces of Arezzo and Siena), the original route has been modified and after 774 BC, when the Franks defeated the Lombards, it became the favourite pilgrims route on their way to Rome.
A long stretch of road of the Via Cassia coincided with the famous Via Francigena, formerly called Via Francesca or Romea. Actually, the Via Francigena was a mass of streets leading to the main religious pilgrim destinations in the Middle Ages such as Santiago de Compostela in Northern Spain, Rome and Jerusalem. Since 1994 the Via Francigena has been declared as )Cultural Itinerary of the Council of Europe” .
Near the kilometre number 200 of the Via Cassia, where it gets to the Via Francigena, in the depths of the Crete Senesi, where the Arbia River flows into the Ombrone River, there is a small ancient village (about 3000 inhabitants) full of charm called: Buonconvento (from the Latina bonus conventus”, "happy place") is mentioned for the first time in 1100; thirteen years later the German emperor Henry VII died here.
It was surrounded by a line of walls starting from 1371, carried on by the Republic of Siena to which it belonged until 1559 when it became part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. It was annexed to Italy in 1861.
Buonconvento was originally fitted with only two doors along the main street. The Porta Senese on the north side, towards Siena, which still has the original woodwork with fittings, and Porta Romana to the south, destroyed in 1944 by the retreating Germans.
The town has remained virtually unchanged for centuries, protected by the moat and battlements of the Guelph wall ring, the borough has changed considerably in the 19th century with the construction of buildings behind the walls, including the Theater of the Risorti. The oldest nucleus of town is crossed from north to south by Soccini street, named in memory of the family that counted many illustrious members among which were lawyers and two heretics. The latter founded doctrinal organizations of various heretical movements developed during the Sixteenth century, who took the name of Socinianism.
The City of Buonconvento houses three museums on its territory. All are very important and of considerable interest both for an audience of tourists and for an audience of enthusiasts and scholars. The Museum of Sharecropping of Siena, the Museum of Sacred Art of the Val d’Arbia and the Oratory of the Confraternity of Mercy are to be visited.
The church of Saint Peter and Paul is one of the most important monuments of Buonconvento. Historical news report that in 1313 in this church the Emperor Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor, died.
A small marble stone, placed on the left side of the facade carved with a cross and engraved with the date 1103, may tell us about the year of its founding.In the Eighteenth century the interiors of the Church were completely renovated in neo-Classical style, while the current facade of brick, with ornamental travertine, was completed in 1723; finally the present tower was rebuilt in the early 1800s. Inside there are some colorful art works by the Sienese school, including a panel depicting the Madonna and Child, painted by Matteo di Giovanni in the Fifteenth century, a panel painted by Pietro di Francesco Orioli from the Fifteenth century, and a fresco by Sano di Pietro from the Fifteenth century depicting the coronation of the Virgin.
Besides the main street which connects the two doors, the medieval village has two other main streets: one on the East side, called Via del Sole (i.e. the sun street) and the other on the West side known as Via Oscura (i.e. the dark street), the central Via Soccini, called once “la Via di Mezzo” (i.e. The middle way). Right about here you can find l’Osteria Enoteca la Via di Mezzo.

"Tratto da la tavolozza del gusto di Giorgio Dracopulos".

How to get to Buonconvento

By car:
From North: Highway A1 - Milano/Roma - exit at Firenze Certosa. Take the motorway Florence-Siena towards Siena. Exit at Siena Sud, towards Roma, take the Cassia SS2. Buonconvento is located located about 70 kilometers (43 miles) south of Florence and about 25 kilometres (16 miles) southeast of Siena in the area known as the Crete Senesi.

By train:
Buonconvento’s train station is only 2 minutes walking of the old medieval village. It takes around two 2:30 hours to get there from Florence or 25 minutes from Siena. Check timetables at Trenitalia’s website.