The evocative Abbey of Santa Maria in Montepiano: a journey through centuries of history and spirituality.

This magnificent religious complex, composed of the church and the monastery, has its roots in the 11th century, when it was entrusted to the Vallombrosan monks. The life of this abbey has been marked by vicissitudes, and the monastery itself, abandoned as early as the sixteenth century, underwent partial demolition in the nineteenth century due to damage caused by an earthquake.

Despite everything, the current buildings of the abbey shine with their 12th century splendor. The church has undergone several changes over the centuries, but overall still retains its original Romanesque forms, with the addition of a bell tower dating back to the 15th-16th century in the apse area. The facade and external sides, made of sandstone blocks, are embellished with a frieze decorated with flying buttresses. But what makes this abbey so special are the architrave and the lunette of the portal, which host bas-reliefs of an archaic style, recalling sculptures from the 9th century, even if they were made almost two centuries later.

Of great interest is the stylized and archaic depiction of a cross, flanked by snakes, lions and dragons, as described in a Psalm, present on the architrave. This fascinating representation is completed by a series of vine shoots. In the lunette, however, a figure stands with raised arms and large open hands, surrounded by plant elements. The facade of the church was directly in contact with the surrounding forest, and these signs connect to the various legends about the miracles of the Blessed Peter, as well as representing an attempt to allay the fears aroused by the presence of the forest.

The interior of the abbey, with its single nave covered by wooden trusses, reveals the transformation of the transept into two side chapels between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Inside, the abbey preserves a precious treasure of frescoes, which range in time from the 13th to the 18th century. Some important finds from the abbey are now preserved in the Cathedral Museum in Prato.

Let yourself be transported on an exciting journey between faith, beauty and mystery. Come and discover the magic of the Abbey of Santa Maria in Montepiano, a place that will envelop you with its thousand-year history, its works of art and its aura of spirituality.