Castle of Spedaletto
Remembered in the memories of travel of the king of France, Filippo II Augusto, of return from third Crusade(1191) articulated a complex castellano, turrito and merlato, realizing in the ' 300 and widening in the course of the successive century modifying of probably the destination from fortilizio to grancia Biocenosis

S. Anna in Camprena
The Monastery of S.Anna in Camprena was founded in the 1324 from Bernardo Tolomei. It is very famous for its REFECTORY, for the important frescoes of Antonio known as Bazzi "Sodoma" (1502-1503) that they decorate it.The Monastery will remain in the history of cinema ,many scenes of the English Patient whre taken there

Abbazia di Monte Oliveto

MONTE OLIVETO MAGGIORE is an early foundation of the Olivetan Order and the Abbey itself is one of the most interesting in Italy. lt stands in the very heart of Tuscany in a beautiful position 33 Km. from Siena among lofty cypresses facing a very suggestive view of the Sienese 'crete' (moors).

It was begun in 1313 by Giovanni Tolomei, later on called Bernardo, with the help of the Sienese nobles Patrizio Patrizi and Ambrogio Piccolomini who lived as hermits with Bernardo; the place at that time was know as the "deserto di Accòna" (the desert of Accona). Other hermits joined them in the process of time. The new foundation followed the Benedictine Rule and, having been approved by Guido Tarlati, the Archbishop of Arezzo in 1319, was sanctioned by Pope Clement VI in 1344.

Around the Abbey are grouped smaller churches, chapels, churches and later additions adorned with graceful loggias. The main gateway is surmounted by a square watch tower decorated with an early 16th century terracotta of Virgin Mary and the Holy Babe with two Angels. Along the shady paths are several Chapels built in the memory of the Saints: Blessed Bernardo's Chapel near the cave where he dwelt (rebuilt in 1760), Santa Scolastica's Chapel built by Bernardo Tolomei and the Chapel of Santa Francesca Romana, dated 1644.

The grand Gothic Abbey built in the shape of a Latin cross was rebuilt inside in the late years of the 18th century.

The beautiful choir stalls were carved and inlaid by Fra Giovanni da Verona from 1503 to 1505, the lectern was made by Raffaello da Brescia in 1518 and the delightful wooden Crucifix is a work of art of the 13th century.

Works of art are to be seen everywhere in this Monastery but particulary in the loggia running around the "Chiostro Grande" (larger cloister) where the walls are frescoed with 36 scenes from the Stories of San Benedetto da Norcia as they were told by St. Gregory. Nine of these frescoes were painted by Luca Signorelli from 1497 to 1498, the rest by Giovanni Antonio Bazzi nicknamed Sodoma from 1505 to 1508.

The well is dated 1439. This Loggia is surmounted by another one resting on graceful pillars. The refectory was frescoed in the 17th century and the Library was planned by Fra Giovanni da Verona in 1518 to house a set of 15th century miniated chorals and some precious pottery. The same artist carved the door, one of the candelabra and a cupboard.

The actual monastery was started a year after the signing of the "Charta fundationis" dated March 26th., 1319 where by it was prescribed that the church should be surrounded with minor buildings.

Monte Oliveto Maggiore is the cradle of the Olivetan Order.

From the earliest times down to the present day it has always held a foremost position in the fields of science, art and of studies in general. A school for the recovery of old books (Istituto di patologia dei libro) has now been founded where qualified monks carry out the most skilful and amazing work.

Sant'Antimo

The Abbey of St.Antimo,near Castelnuovo dell'Abate,is an important example of the thirteenth-century monastic architecture.The present church,dating back to the 12th century,has a simple façade crowned with small arches, a massive square bell tower in the Lombard style with a 12th century bell, and a semicircular apse.The interior -a Romanesque basilican structure - has a nave and two aisles separated by high columns and spaced out by cruciform pillars.The abbey,restored at the beginning of the 20th century,is the seat of a comunnity of canons who officiate with Gregorian chants.

The Via Francigena

The Via Francigena is a historical itinerary leading to Rome from Canterbury, a major route which in the past was used by thousands of pilgrims on their way to Rome. At the beginning of the 11th century mainly, a multitude of souls "looking for their Lost Heavenly Home" took the habit of travelling across Europe. This route bears witness to the importance of the practice of pilgrimage in medieval times; the pilgrim was to travel mostly on foot (for penitential reasons), covering about 20-25 Km a day,and was driven by a fundamentally devotional reason: the pilgrimage to the Holy Sites of Christianity.There were at the time three main centers of attraction for that journeying humanity:Rome, first of all, the site of the martyrdom of Saint Peter and Saint Paul; Santiago de Compostela, the place chosen by the apostle Saint James to rest in peace and obviously Jerusalem in the Holy Land. The pilgrim did not travel alone but in a group and he used to carry the pilgrimage emblems (the shell for Santiago de Compostela, the cross for Jerusalem and the key for Saint Peter in Rome). Along these very same pilgrim routes, an intense trading activity was carried out and armies followed the same itineraries in the course of their movements.

http://www.francigena.ch/eng/via.shtml

Bagni san filippo

Baths Saint Filippo owes its origin to the presence of her thermal waters with therapeutic property known from antiquity. One thinks, in fact, that the origin of the thermal center is Etruscan, while the very existence of a roman takeover inthe imperial age is documented. After alternate vicissitudes, an important impulse of the thermal activity was had to the end of theXVIII century, thanks to the scientific analysis of the waters that confirm the property and extend the use of application for the cutaneous, reumatiche and arthritic diseases, to the cure of the respiratory diseases. In the beginning of century XIX the construction of a new thermal system and widening of the receptive potentiality of the country transforming some buildings into lodges still existing. The cave of Saint Filippo is to visit, dug in a single great block of travertino; here according to legend Saint Filippo Benizi in 1267 sheltered here in order to escape being elected to Pope and to live in hermitage. In the area near the town one can find the White cave where the thermal waters slide and create waterfalls and leave in their passage, thanks to their limestone, a unique landscape of characteristic candid cliffs, carved in the most various shapes.

San Casciano Bagni

The thermal waters at San Casciano gush out from a multitude of springs constituting a basin of noteworthy capacity. The chemical - physical characteristics classify it as hyper-thermal, sulfuric, calcic and magnesic water: at some of these springs natural, thermal mud is formed that has extraordinary therapeutic properties. The muds are obtained through a natural mixture of mineral water and clay that is steeped and enriched with mineral components in underground cavities that surround San Casciano dei Bagni.

Treatments

The present owners of the thermal complex have an innovative program for improving the thermal treatments, which will take maximum advantage of the thermal water in a natural and climatic environment.

Pelobalneotherapy

The role of baths in the treatment of rheumatic illness is to supply assistance in the prevention and/or cure of some articular affections, to reduce recurrence of symptoms or complications and to rehabilitate the patient. San Casciano dei Bagni will be part of this new approach in health spas, with the continuous presence of specialists in various disciplines and with its new facilities for the treatment and rehabilitation of the pathologies that will most benefit from thermal treatments.

Mineral Water Cures

Mineral water treatments have always been carried out in the principal health spas and have traditionally constituted the most immediate and pleasant aspect of spa treatment for the patient. Usually the illnesses treated by drinking water are those regarding the stomach, the intestine, the urinary tract, and diseases such as gout, obesity and diabetes as well as some pediatric ailments.

Treatment of ear, nose and throat diseases (aerosol, inhalations and nebulization)

Inhalatory thermal treatments through various techniques allow for the treatment of various upper respiratory pathologies such as rhinitis, sinusitis, pharyngitis, adenoids, tonsillitis, laryngitis as well as pulmonary problems such as chronic bronchitis, tracheo-bronchitis and forms of asthma with mucous build up. In the near future the Spas at San Casciano dei Bagni will also have pertubarich inhalations to face the problem of rhinologic deafness.

Dermatology, esthetic and gynecological treatments

Certain gynecological problems benefit greatly from thermal therapy. Even some infertility problems are alleviated by resolving chronic inflammation and aiding the endocrinological system. The vegetable mineral muds mixed with the thermal waters from the spring named "Il Portico" in San Casciano dei Bagni are used in facial masks in specific therapeutic treatments in cases of seborrhea, acne and beginning phases of cutaneous senescence