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Data
- Interest:
- Naturalistic and Historical - archaeological
- Type of route:
- ring
- Difficulty level:
- E
- Track length:
- 21 km
- Total height difference:
- 370 m
- Departure altitude:
- N.A. (not available)
- Max quota:
- N.A. (not available)
- Min quota:
- N.A. (not available)
- Excursion time:
- 5h 30 min
- Edited by:
- ProLoco of Ficulle
- Updated on:
- June 2017
- Description:
- The Path of the vineyards
Our journey begins by heading towards the top of the Poggio above the village, to descend towards the locality of Montiano where, skirting vineyards and through woods, we will arrive at the locality of La Sala, home of the homonymous castle, built in 1350 by Angelo Monaldeschi della Vipera.
From here, again among the characteristic vineyards of our places, we will take a fantastic road on the crest of the clay gullies that descend to the ditch of the Sala, which we will skirt until we cross it to join the provincial road 51 up to the Via Cassia Antica or road del Terronaccio in the popular tradition.
This stretch that goes up from the Paglia River could correspond to the ancient route of the Via Cassia at least up to the Cerquapinza fountain.
Along the road we will find the ruins of an embankment and an imposing building called “il Fontanone”, made up of the remains of an ancient fortress, perhaps a post office.
In this regard, from "The viability between Bologna and Florence over time" by A.Bacci: "... The Via del Casentino, which we have excluded as being built by Flaminio for the reasons already mentioned, was nevertheless a very important route ; by the Annales Stadenses it is even considered the best (the melior way) from Germany to Rome ... The distance between one station and another is expressed in leagues ... The identification of Sarminian was very laborious, because today this word It's disappeared. Following the idea that this Roman road corresponds in this central part of the route at least briefly to Statale 71, the 10 leagues, that is about twenty kilometers, from Città della Pieve (or Castel della Pieve) lead us to the territory of Ficulle. Even proceeding in the opposite direction, the 6 leagues from Orvieto bring us back to the same area. In fact, in the ancient land register of Orvieto (one of the oldest in Italy, from 1292; the Land Registry of the Florentine Republic dates back to 1427) in the parish of Ficulle the Burgo Sermognani is registered ... "
Monaldo Monaldeschi della Cervara also writes: "The Castle of Montelione was founded in these times (year 1052), the Tower in the hill known as Torrone, and the one in the road of M. Albano to guard the Chiane Valley, which was delli Orvietani ".
"The Castle of Monteleone was also built in these times (1052), the tower on the hill called the Torrone and the one along the Montalvano road to guard the Chiani river valley"
Of this tower there are only a few circular ruins and stretches of paved road around it, but the town is an excellent observation point from which you can see Orvieto to the south, the territory of Ficulle and the Valdichiana to the north, Lazio and to Tuscany to the west, to Monte Peglia to the east.
Going up towards the town, in the middle of a dense grove overlooking the ditch under the church of the Maestà, we find the Cerquapinza fountain, in which a small hole placed a few tens of meters upstream, brings abundant fresh water that once was used to fill jugs and as a drinking trough for the animals.
We will be able to enjoy a well-deserved rest in the shade of the trees of the public park.
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