True stories told
—Stories and tales
Leonardo Da Vinci
and the Balze
Every glimpse of the Tuscan crags is a leap back in time, an exciting encounter with the same visions that inspired the genius of Leonardo da Vinci. His most famous canvases, from the Madonna of the Fusi to the Virgin of the Rocks, are open windows onto this eternal landscape, and even the Mona Lisa conceals these marvellous forms within its mysteries.
Leonardo was not only a painter but also a careful scholar of these lands, so much so that his analyses of the origins and formation of Valdarno find their way into the Hammer codex. There, among his notes, he provides clear and detailed explanations, revealing knowledge that only direct observation could provide. And today, looking at his works, we cannot help but wonder: is it possible that those landscapes are the Valdarno crags? The details match, the shapes resemble each other, and the clues seem to confirm this fascinating suggestion.
Google Maps
—A journey through time
Between Magic and Mystery
Exploring the beating heart of Tuscany, from the slopes of Laterina to Reggello, reveals a world where nature tells centuries-old stories through the names of its farmhouses. Lands that whisper legends of magic with names such as Cave, Buca, and Forra: every corner tells of the adventure of a landscape that has remained wild and untamed, where the earth rises in vertical walls and hidden ravines, defying human domination.
In these places, erosion has sculpted a realm of concavities and sheer walls, a primordial sanctuary preserved by its own ruggedness. Here, history is intertwined with myth, as evidenced by evocative names such as the Buca delle Fate (Fairy Hole), where popular imagination placed mysterious presences amidst enchanting beauty and evocative ruins.
The fascination of these places also lies in their challenges: the crags, with their vertical walls eroded by time, do not host agricultural work but tell stories of shelters dug into the earth, of hidden tunnels and of communities that, in the storm of the Second World War, found safety in its secret caverns. Underground passages that still testify to the ingenuity and tenacity of the human soul.
A landscape that enchants and challenges, an invitation to discover the traces of history that are inextricably intertwined with the wild and untamed nature of Tuscany.
An adventure awaits those ready to explore the secrets hidden among its crags.
