Volterra e la Via del Sale

20 km that leave you breathless, the spectacle of the Salt Road between Gambassi and Volterra

Along with the Francigena, the Via Volterrana is one of the oldest roads in Tuscany.

It stretches from Florence to Volterra for more than 60 kilometres, rising and falling over hills through the Val di Pesa, Val d’Elsa and Val d’Era. It owes its second name of the Salt Road, or the Via Salaiola, to the precious white gold that once followed this route to reach the markets of the capital of the grand duchy.

From Saline di Volterra, it climbed up to Volterra, then to Gambassi, where it crossed the Via Francigena, and then went on to Castelfiorentino and Montespertoli to reach Florence eventually. Kilometres of cobblestone trodden by thousands of merchants and animals loaded with salt.

The 21 kilometres between Gambassi and Volterra, which have been reopened to excursionists, cross a landscape that will leave you speechless, This path takes the name “Dalla Via Francigena alla Costa degli Etruschi”. with hills and crags where permanent installations by the artist Mauro Staccioli have recently been placed.

Beyond the Castagno – a breathtaking crossroad between San Gimigano, Gambassi and Volterra – it’s worth stopping at Mommialla and Sant’Ottaviano, where two small Romanesque churches have recently been restored

And then upon arrival-three thousand years of history. This is Volterra, a thousand-year sedimentation of civilization.
Its land is laden with minerals, salt and alabaster made it rich. The Etruscans gave it a name, the Romans a theater, and the Middle Ages left it with houses, towers and mighty walls, a Praetorian Palace and the famous Palazzo dei Priori (the oldest municipal palace in Tuscany).

The Medici family conquered it and left it a mighty fortress as a dowry, the Renaissance dotted it with aristocratic palaces, and the unification of Italy came with roads and a psychiatric hospital.

Volterra, this earthy city emerging from the earth, is worth more than just a stop, if only for a stroll through the alleys of the historic center.