History, Religion, Art and Nature

Chiusi della Verna, a unique place nestled in the Tuscan Apennine mountains. A small corner of the world where history, religion, art, and nature have intertwined.

It was here, over 800 years ago, that Francis of Assisi founded the Sanctuary of La Verna, and on this sacred mountain, he received the stigmata. Michelangelo Buonarroti, who was born in these territories, later depicted the landscape of Chiusi della Verna in his universal masterpieces: The Creation of Adam and the Doni Tondo. History tells of many prominent figures who, throughout the centuries, crossed paths with these lands. The poet Dante Alighieri mentions La Verna in the Divine Comedy, in Canto XI of Paradiso, referring to it as “that harsh rock between Tiber and Arno.” Between 1479 and 1500, the Della Robbia family created glazed terracotta works, bringing art to the Sanctuary that can still be admired today. Giorgio Vasari, in his Lives, writes about the Sanctuary and was likely familiar with and visited these places, which were not far from his native Arezzo.

Since 1993, the territory has been part of the Foreste Casentinesi National Park, which features the Monumental Forest of La Verna and the Vallesanta area.