Pienza is a small village in southern Tuscany, in the famous Val d’Orcia, absolutely worth a visit. It is located about 20 km east of Montalcino and a few km west of Montepulciano in the beautiful region of Val d’Orcia south of Siena, between soft and poetic hills and fabulous views. Pienza enjoys a very strategic position perched on top of a hill, overlooking the entire valley of the Orcia with a breathtaking view.
This enchanting village is widely known as the "ideal" city of the Renaissance, created by the great humanist Enea Silvio Piccolomini, who later became Pope Pius II. Piccolomini had the financial means and influence to transform his humble home village, Corsignano, into what he believed should be a utopian city, embodying the principles and philosophy of the classical age and the great Italian Renaissance.
The project was carried out by the architect Bernardo Rossellino, under the guidance of the great humanist Leon Battista Alberti. In just 3 years a complex of beautiful and harmonious buildings was built: the Cathedral, the Papal residence or Palazzo Piccolomini, the Town Hall, and the enchanting central square.
