Cetona is a town and ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' in the southern part

province of Siena The province of Siena ( it, provincia di Siena, link=no, ) is a province in Tuscany, Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena. Geography The province is divided into seven historical areas: * Alta Val d'Elsa * Chianti senese * The urban area o ...

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

, in an area where

Umbria it, Umbro (man) it, Umbra (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , ...

and

Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

meet. The geographical elevation is between and the of

Monte Cetona The Monte Cetona is a mountain located in the southern Tuscany region of Italy. Features The mountain stands near the SE border of the province of Siena, and closes the long, hilly ridge which divides val d'Orcia from val di Chiana. It belon ...

itself, at the base of which the town is situated at around .

History

Some of the oldest human settlements of central Italy were discovered at the base of Monte Cetona, such as the early neo-

Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...

''Gosto cave'' (40–80th century BC) and ''Lattaia cave'' (9–10th century BC). The ''Belverde'' park hosts 25 prehistoric and Bronze Age caves, such as the ''San Francesco cave''. There are several sites of

Etruscan __NOTOC__ Etruscan may refer to: Ancient civilization *The Etruscan language, an extinct language in ancient Italy *Something derived from or related to the Etruscan civilization **Etruscan architecture **Etruscan art **Etruscan cities ** Etrusca ...

finds. The town of Cetona developed on the hillside around the '' rocca'' fortress, containing a square tower (about 900 AD) and an inner fortress wall. It became known as the ''Scitonia'' castle. In the first mention of the ''

'', at the end of the 11th century,

Pope Gregory VII Pope Gregory VII ( la, Gregorius VII; 1015 – 25 May 1085), born Hildebrand of Sovana ( it, Ildebrando di Soana), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 April 1073 to his death in 1085. He is venerated as a saint ...

granted feudal rights to a member of his family, the

Aldobrandeschi The Aldobrandeschi were an Italian noble family from southern Tuscany. Overview Of probable Lombard origin, they appear in history as counts in the 9th century. The first known count was Hildebrand II (857). Their possession extended to what i ...

. The family's heirs sold the rights,Cetona: storia
(archived link, 16 February 2012) and in the 14th century, Cetona was alternatingly ruled by

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

and

Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are compl ...

(until 1354), and, after a brief rule by

Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part o ...

, was annexed by Siena. An outer wall was built, containing two round towers (1458). Grand Duke

Cosimo I de' Medici Cosimo I de' Medici (12 June 1519 – 21 April 1574) was the second Duke of Florence from 1537 until 1569, when he became the first Grand Duke of Tuscany, a title he held until his death. Life Rise to power Cosimo was born in Florence on 12 ...

of Tuscany sold Cetona in 1556, to the marchese

Chiappino Vitelli Giovan Luigi "Chiappino" Vitelli (1519 – July 1575) was an Italian marquis and military leader, son of Niccolò Vitelli. Vitelli served as captain under Cosimo I de' Medici in his wars to gain Florence, Siena and Montalcino, and was appointed ...

(1519–75), who made the fortress into a private residence, and built the piazza below it, today named ''Piazza Garibaldi''. His descendants also erected ''Palazzo Vitelli'' in the late 17th century. Cetona was connected to

Sarteano Sarteano is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about southeast of Siena. Sarteano is particularly important from the historical point of view. Located betwe ...

(1772–1840), and annexed to Italy in 1861. The place name of ''Cetona'' or ''Citonia'' (local variation) probably comes from the Latin word ''caedita'', "felled, deforested" with regard to a deforested and cultivated place. An early Christian

baptistery In Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptisterium''; Greek , 'bathing-place, baptistery', from , baptízein, 'to baptize') is the separate centrally planned structure surrounding the baptismal ...

, now a parish church, mentioned in documents as ''baptisterium Sancti Johannis de Queneto'' or ''de Queteno'', may have been named in reference to the Chieteno stream that flows just south of Cetona.

Main sights

Archeological finds are on display in ''Museo Civico per la Preistoria del Monte Cetona'' (in Town), which also administers the ''Parco Archeologico Naturalistico del Monte Cetona'' (three km towards

). The '' Rocca'' is still privately owned; the other significant hill is occupied by ''Palazzo a Parco Terrosi'' (1750), owned by Valentino. Churches in Cetona are the ''Chiesa di San Michele Arcangelo'' (built 1155) and the ''Chiesa la Collegiata della San Trinita'' church (1475), as well as the ''Convento di San Francesco'' (since 1212) and ''Convento di Santa Maria a Belverde'' (frescoes by

Cola Petruccioli Cola Petruccioli (1360–1401) was an Italian painter from Orvieto in Umbria, known as an apprentice to Ugolino di Prete Ilaro, active in the period around 1400 and contemporary of the Sienese School. His works are seen in the Cathedral of A ...

Economy

Cetona today is traditionally agricultural (vine, olive), but increasingly basing its economy on

agritourism Agritourism or agrotourism involves any agriculturally based operation or activity that brings visitors to a farm or ranch. Types A 2018 article published in the ''Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development'' classified a ...

References

External links

Cetona - photos and history
Cities and towns in Tuscany {{Siena-geo-stub