A powerful tower commands Montecatini
Val di Cecina and the surrounding lands. It was
the ancient dwelling the Belforti. The village at its bottom
has the typical features of a Medieval
centre built around the politic and religious palaces:
praetorian palace with its fine portico, and the S.
Biagio church of the XIV c. The hilly landscape
that goes around Montecatini offers wonderful
views, with woods plenty
of game and really fascinating urban settlements.
Among these, there is the Castle of
Querceto, surrounded by charming woods. It shows
the peculiar features of a Medieval villages set round
the parish church of S. John.
The village of La Sassa, set
on a hill that commands the whole landscape, has kept its
ancient gathered structure round the tower and church
of St. Matthew.
Finally, worth of interest are the settlements of Casaglia, Gello, Buriano, Miemo and
the ancient copper mines located
close to the village of Montecatini.
THE MINE OF MONTECATINI VAL DI CECINA
The entire Upper Cecina Valley abounds in underground resources
such as halite, copper, alabaster and geothermic fluids which
have been utilized since antiquity.
The Mine Museum, housed in the 14th century Palazzo Pretorio
in Montecatini Val di Cecina documents the vast range of
resources, sites and activities located in the Upper Cecina
Valley.
The detailed documentation displayed in the museum is enriched
by a visit to the Caporciano Mine (once the richest copper
mine in Europe), including the administrative and technical
offices at the entrance to the mine, the Alfredo Shaft
and the Muraglione Dam.
The museum not only offers historical information about
the Carporciano Mine from 1827 to 1907 but also displays
a comprehensive and thematic account of the wide range of
underground resources utilized since antiquity, other 19th
century coppermines that left their mark on remote areas,
the story of the salt works from antiquity to the present
day, the alabaster craft, the geothermal basin and usage
of the endogenous fluids, the exquisite workmanship of the
chalcedony mosaics, the lignite mine, the sulphurous springs
and a splendid collection of multifarious minerals.
The Caporciano Mine houses a rich archive of administrative
books (pay rolls, work schedules, registers and correspondence)
technical plans (of the mines, galleries, machinery and equipment)
enriched by specific publications on the range of underground
resources in the area.
