Volterra

Orange Flag of the Italian Touring Club

Formerly known by the Etruscan name of Velathri, today Volterra stands on top of a hill, threatened by the chasm of the Balze. Around the V-IV century BC the village lived an exceptional period, documented among other things by the collection of cinerary urns (famous for that of the Bride and Groom) and by the bronze "Shadow of the Evening" kept at the Guarnacci Museum.

It is worth visiting the Cathedral, dating from 1120 and later renovated in typical Pisan Romanesque style, the octagonal Baptistery, the square overlooked by the Palazzo dei Priori, the Etruscan Porta all'Arco, the Roman theatre, the Civic Art Gallery with Rosso Fiorentino's Deposition, and the frescoed Gothic chapel of the Croce di Giorno in San Francesco.

Also noteworthy is the eco-museum dedicated toalabaster, one of the resources of the city and its artisans.