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Caprese Michelangelo
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This is a little centre of tourism placed on a hilltop of the Tuscan Apennino, at 653mt above sea level, surrounded by an area of outstanding natural beauty, typical of the high Tevere valley. The meadowlands and sweet-chestnut woods are ideal for walking, riding or just relaxing. Caprese, however, is not just an attractive place: it is here that nature and history fuse into an integral part of great art. For it was here, in the house of his father, the Podestà /Squire), that Michelangelo Buonarroti was born in 1475, and in the tiny Church of S. Giovanni that he was baptised.
The village was by then under the dominion of FLorence, but its origins go back a long way: the ancient cultures of Liguria, Umbria and Etruria all existed here, and there are also traces of Roman times in the via Ariminensis. Reliable historians maintain that Totila, King of the Goths, died here in 552 A.D. There are historical documents from the era of Longobarda rule which refer to the Pluteus discovered during restoration work on the Church of S. Cristoforo. In the Buonarroti’s house and gardens is a collection of modern sculpture and casts of the great artists work.
During recent years the Comune has organised annual seminars for the study of the Art of Fresco. In the surrounding woodlands are wild strawberries, blackberries, mushrooms, and above all, sweet chestnuts which give rise to the Chestnut Festival in
October.
In the mountains nearby you can visit many charming places and also follow the ridges of the "Alpe di Catenaia" where San Francesco walked from Monte Casale to La Verna. It is on this track that the Hermitage of Casella was founded in memory of San Francesco 's last farewell to La Verna. Also nearby are churches of great historical interest: the ancient Abbey of Tifi, the church of S. Cristoforo at Monna and the Pieve di S.Cassiano.
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