Art and antiquities day

We explored a couple of new towns today--both north of Arezzo in a hilly region that looks a lot like Vermont without the dairy cows.

Bibbiena was small, cute and had an historic church with two beautiful examples of della Robbia reliefs on opposite walls near the altar. I always admire the della Robbia's as they are about 500 years old yet the glazes are fresh and bright and could have been done in recent times. We had a cappuccino on the piazza, enjoying the sun and the breeze, then moved on as there isn't a lot happening in Bibbiena.

Next up was Poppi. Joe had this town bookmarked as it has a huge castle that is open for exploration.

The Castello di Poppi is in a hilltop position with 360 degree views of the surrounding countryside. It is historically significant as it is the site of an important battle between the Guelphs and the Ghibillines in 1289. The poet Dante Alighieri actually fought in the battle and it provided him with material on which he based some of the Divine Comedy.

We walked throughout the castello, which was amazingly well preserved, then Joe just had to climb to the top of the bell tower, but not me. I don't do towers. 

After we took a walk around the town to see what else was up in Poppi, we decided to head over to Arezzo for a late lunch and some vino.

Although we've visited Arezzo 4-5 times we had never stopped to see the fresco cycle done by Piero della Francesca, probably the most famous and revered artist of this part of Italy. To view it, you have to pay an admission charge at the front door of the church of San Francesco, then must walk behind the altar where the lively colors and realistic images jump right out. In the very next chapel were the frescoes of another artist from the Arezzo area, but when seen immediately next to the della Francescas, they seemed pale and cartoony--not at all the quality of the others.

Yesterday, Arezzo held its annual Giostro di Saracino, which is as big to them as the Palio is to Siena. The Piazza Grande was full of stadium seating and the cobbled surface was covered in dirt. The place where we wanted to have lunch is right on the piazza so we had to make a decision as to whether it was worth it to stay there with all the noise of the crews taking down the bleachers. Here's what we had for lunch:

I think it was worth it.