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Stemma di Lucignano

Tuscany · Arezzo

Lucignano

A walled elliptical hill town between Siena and Arezzo, planned in medieval concentric rings around the goldsmith's reliquary called the Tree of Life.

Known for

  • ALBERO D'ORO

    Gothic goldsmith's reliquary in the Museo Civico, 260 cm tall, called the Tree of Love by tradition and considered a marriage charm.

  • ELLIPTICAL PLAN

    Four concentric rings of streets inside the medieval walls, one of the most complete elliptical hill-town plans surviving in Tuscany.

  • CONTESTED

    Continuously fought over by Siena, Arezzo, Florence and Perugia between 1200 and 1500, walls and gates rebuilt by Siena in 1371.

When to visit

Best · Apr–Oct

  • J10°
  • F13°
  • M14°
  • A18°
  • M23°
  • J28°
  • J33°
  • A32°
  • S26°
  • O21°
  • N15°
  • D11°
  • Best
  • Hot or crowded
  • Quiet
  • Mostly closed

Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.

Why come

Lucignano sits on a hill in the Valdichiana, halfway between Siena and Arezzo, built on a tight elliptical plan of four concentric rings of streets. Its position made it one of the most contested settlements of medieval Toscana: Siena, Arezzo, Florence and Perugia all fought over it between 1200 and 1500. The current walls and three gates date to a Sienese reconstruction of 1371.

In the Museo Civico inside the Palazzo Comunale stands the Albero d'Oro, a 260-centimeter Gothic gold-and-coral reliquary in the shape of a tree, begun by Ugolino di Vieri in 1350 and finished by Gabriello d'Antonio in 1471. Local tradition turned it into the Albero dell'Amore, a marriage charm. The Collegiata di San Michele Arcangelo dominates the highest ring of the borgo, and the elliptical plan is best read from the air, which is why drone footage of Lucignano keeps appearing in articles about medieval Tuscan urbanism.

The Sunday letter

We haven’t written Lucignano’s letter yet.

One town every Sunday, with the photo, the food, the festa. Be there when this one comes up. Free, by Peter & Sophia from Pietrasanta.

How to get there

From Bologna (BLQ), about 2h 9m by car.

Florence / Pisa (PSA) is about 2h 23m away.

By car from the centre of Siena 47 minutes, Perugia 1 hour or Florence 1h 9m.

There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.

Coming from Florence, Bologna or Pisa?

Coming by train into Perugia? Lucignano is about 59 minutes away by road.

Lucignano — photo 1
Lucignano — photo 2

What to see

  • Albero d'Oro

    260-cm Gothic reliquary in the shape of a tree, gold, coral and enamel, begun by Ugolino di Vieri in 1350 and completed by Gabriello d'Antonio in 1471.

  • Centro storico ellittico

    Four concentric rings of streets inside elliptical walls, the most complete example of medieval Tuscan elliptical town planning.

  • Collegiata di San Michele Arcangelo

    Eighteenth-century church on the highest ring of the borgo, with a Vasari façade adjustment and a baroque organ inside the medieval shell.

  • Palazzo Comunale

    Thirteenth-century town hall, seat of the Museo Civico, holding the Albero d'Oro reliquary and a fresco cycle by the school of Bartolo di Fredi.

  • Fortezza Medicea

    Sixteenth-century Medici bastion at the eastern edge of the walls, built after Cosimo I took the Valdichiana, used today as a public terrace.

The slow-trip planner

Building a trip? Find where Lucignano fits in a slow Italy circuit.

Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.

Plan your trip

Through the year

What happens here

Feasts and festivals that come back year after year. We give the month rather than the date, because the date moves and the month rarely does. Check with the source before you plan a journey around one.

Living here

  • Population 3,383
  • In-betweeni
  • Pharmacy: none mapped
  • High school within a 30-minute drive
  • Train station in the comune
  • Nearest airport Bologna, 2 h 9 min drive
  • Regional capital Firenze, 1 h 9 min drive

Common questions

What is Lucignano known for?
Lucignano is a walled elliptical hill town at 400 meters between Siena and Arezzo, planned in medieval concentric rings around the goldsmith's reliquary called the Tree of Life.
Where is Lucignano?
Lucignano is a comune in the province of Arezzo, in Tuscany.
What is the nearest airport to Lucignano?
Bologna (BLQ), about 2h 9m by car.
Can you get to Lucignano without a car?
Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
How long is the drive from Siena to Lucignano?
About 47 minutes by car.
When is the best time to visit Lucignano?
Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 33 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 12 rain days.
Is there a sagra or a festival in Lucignano?
Yes. Sagra della Filiera del Tartufo Marzuolo, Memorie dal passato a Lucignano and Sagra della castagna e del porcino. March is when the first of them falls.
Which other towns are like Lucignano?
Poppi, Chiusi and Massa Marittima.
How many people live in Lucignano?
3,383 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources

The numbers

  • Elevation: 400 m
  • Population: 3,383
  • Surface area: 44.81 km²

These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.

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