The Valley of the Chiana is the most vast of the Apennine
valleys occupying more than 500 square kilometers of
immaculately tended cultivation appearing as a garden from
Cortona, the old city which dominates it from its height of
600 m. Already 22 centuries ago it must have been considered
the granary of Etruria since Hannibal, before crossing it to draw the Roman legions
into the ambush at Trasimeno, was able to supply his troops by sacking it.
But more than the evidence recorded by historians, are the
archeological remains and the cultural traditions which reveal the Val di
Chiana as the land of ancient civilization. The hypogeal
tombs of Camucia and Sodo, the remains of Farneta, the
museum of Cortona, confirm that the Etruscans populated and
cultivated this valley battling with the forces of the water which for
thousands of years had swamped it.
When Leonardo, more than 15 centuries later, designed his
“Codice Atlantico”, the Val di Chiana appeared again as a
lake. That is why, on the fall of the Western Roman Empire,
the Barbaric invasions and mainly the Gothic wars which
stained Italy with blood for almost all of the VI cent.,
depopulated the countryside. No longer carefully
attended, the land was once more invaded by the waters.
The Lorena reclamation, at the beginning of the XIX cent., designed and
directed by the Aretine Vittorio Fossombroni, restored its
ancient fertility to the valley, re-establishing villages
and farm houses, wonderfully designed, and, for a time,
extraordinarily functional.
It was not always, however, an isolated paradise.
After Hannibal, other epic historical events took place in
the valley during the process which brought about the
establishment of the Tuscan State.
The Battle of Pieve al
Toppo (1288) in which the Aretines inflicted a tough defeat
on the Sienese, who were at the time allied with the
Florentine Guelphs, and the battle, called Scannagallo
(1554) because of the large number of mercenary French
soldiers killed, which took place near Foiano and determined
the subjection of the Republic of Siena to Cosimo de’
Medici, First Grand Duke of Tuscany.
Many extraordinary geniuses of art were born here
amongst the most famous of whom are Luca Signorelli, Pietro
da Cortona, Andrea Sansovino, and in our own century, Gino Severini.
The Autostrada del Sole and the Rome-Milan railway
line cut the valley lengthwise. Two state roads, the
Umbro-Casentinese and the eastern branch of the Cassia,
following the curving line on both sides, provide excellent
connections with the larger centers
while a dense network of good provincial roads allows for
the crossing of the valley in all directions and for the
discovering of the most beautiful spots.
The Val di Chiana was the granary of Etruria and is still
today the only area where the most prized breed of cattle is
raised, the Chianina, which is derived directly from the
pre-historical “bos primigenius” . This agricultural
vocation characterizes the economy of the valley, where
activities connected to cereal crop production, sugar beet,
quality oil production and a typical wine “Bianco Vergine”,
prosper.
