Vicopisano
Encyclopedia
- "Lugnano" redirects here. For the comune, see Lugnano in TeverinaLugnano in TeverinaLugnano in Teverina is a comune in the Province of Terni in the Italian region Umbria, located about 60 km south of Perugia and about 25 km west of Terni....
.
Vicopisano is a comune
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
(municipality) in the Province of Pisa
Province of Pisa
The Province of Pisa is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Pisa.It has an area of 2,448 km², and a total population of 394,101 . There are 39 comuni in the province ....
in the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
region Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
, located about 50 km west of Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
and about 15 km east of Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
. It occupies the former valley of the Arno River (which now flows some km southwards), bounded by the Monte Pisano from north.
Bientina
Bientina is a comune in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 50 km west of Florence and about 15 km east of Pisa....
, Buti
Buti
Buti is a comune in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 50 km west of Florence and about 15 km east of Pisa...
, Calci
Calci
Calci is a comune in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 60 km west of Florence and about 9 km east of Pisa...
, Calcinaia
Calcinaia
Calcinaia is a comune and town in the province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 50 km west of Florence and about 20 km east of Pisa....
, Cascina
Cascina
Cascina is a comune in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 60 km west of Florence and about 13 km southeast of Pisa....
, San Giuliano Terme
San Giuliano Terme
San Giuliano Terme is a comune in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 60 km west of Florence and about 7 km northeast of Pisa.- Main sights :...
.
Economical activities include ceramics, mechanics (Piaggio
Piaggio
Piaggio based in Pontedera, Italy encompasses seven brands of scooters, motorcycles and compact commercial vehicles. As the fourth largest producer of scooters and motorcycles in the world, Piaggio produces more than 600,000 vehicles annually, with five research and development centers, more than...
) and bottling of mineral waters. The agriculture is based on olive oil and cereals.
History
In medieval times Vicopisano was a flourishing fortified center of the Republic of PisaRepublic of Pisa
The Republic of Pisa was a de facto independent state centered on the Tuscan city of Pisa during the late tenth and eleventh centuries. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated Mediterranean and Italian trade for a century before being surpassed and...
. It was conquered by Florence
Republic of Florence
The Republic of Florence , or the Florentine Republic, was a city-state that was centered on the city of Florence, located in modern Tuscany, Italy. The republic was founded in 1115, when the Florentine people rebelled against the Margraviate of Tuscany upon Margravine Matilda's death. The...
in 1406. Here a castle (Rocca Nuova) designed by Filippo Brunelleschi
Filippo Brunelleschi
Filippo Brunelleschi was one of the foremost architects and engineers of the Italian Renaissance. He is perhaps most famous for inventing linear perspective and designing the dome of the Florence Cathedral, but his accomplishments also included bronze artwork, architecture , mathematics,...
was built in 1434.
Main sights
- Brunelleschi Rocca (castle), with an annexed Romanesque church from the 12th century
- 12 medieval towers
- Pieve di Santa Maria (12th century), with 13th century frescoes.
- Pieve di San Jacopo
- Palazzo Pretorio (12th century)
- Palazzo della Vecchia Posta (12th century)
- Villa Fehr