This splendid villa located in the heart of the Tuscan countryside, a few steps from the town of San Miniato and in a panoramic position, is the magnificent result of the renovation of a military fort dating back to 786 AD, known as Castrum Moriori.
This property has medieval origins like the municipality in which it is located, San Miniato, a Tuscan town that sits on a hill halfway between Pisa and Florence and a very important economic and cultural centre in the area that boasts numerous productions of fine materials and products such as leather, white truffles, wine and oil.
Renovated in 2013, this villa, now an accommodation facility, is the work of recovery of a centuries-old castle built in a strategic area and victim of numerous battles between the village of San Miniato and the city of Pisa that took place in the 14th century. It was later replaced by a large farm owned by the Grifoni family and finally passed in 1751 to the Florentine Pazzi family, who transformed it into a farmhouse of which evidence still exists on the capitals signed with the name of the noble family.
In keeping with the rustic Tuscan style, each flat in this villa has been refurbished with fine materials such as handmade terracotta floors from Impruneta, fine handcrafted wooden furniture, and skilfully renovated 19th-century wooden beamed ceilings.
The interiors are composed as follows: entrance from the garden onto a large hallway on the floor of which the villa's coat of arms has been hand-painted and from which one enters, on the left, the first flat composed of a large living room with dining room and a handmade kitchen in Carrara marble with a working fireplace. A corridor then separates the living area from the sleeping area consisting of two double bedrooms and a bathroom with shower.
Also on the ground floor is the second flat with separate entrance and exclusive courtyard, comprising a large living room with working fireplace, kitchen, three double bedrooms and three spacious bathrooms.
Continuing on the first floor of the villa is the third flat, consisting of a large living room also with fireplace, dining room with kitchen and two double bedrooms both with en-suite bathrooms.
On this floor there is also the fourth flat developed on two levels and consisting of a large dining room with kitchen and fireplace, a large and bright living room, a bathroom and two double bedrooms with en-suite bathroom. A stone staircase leads up to the second attic floor, which consists of a large living space with two bathrooms and offers the possibility of enjoying the environment as one pleases.
Returning to the ground floor, a flight of steps leads to the basement level where there is a professional kitchen, a large hall now used to host congresses and ceremonies, three rooms with exposed vaulted ceilings and a reception room with a minibar and direct access to the outside. These spaces were obtained from the old cellars of the villa.
The property is completed by a large parking area, a large garden, 32 hectares of land planted partly with olive groves and partly with woodland, a fantastic swimming pool in a panoramic position overlooking the village of San Miniato, and an outbuilding of about 600 square metres in need of renovation.
San Miniato is a medieval village located on a hill in the verdant Florentine countryside, an excellent crossroads between the cities of Pisa and Florence, which fought numerous battles for its conquest. An important economic and industrial centre in the Ponte a Egola leather area, San Miniato is famous for its white truffles and both wine and oil products.
Its birth is due to the arrival on this hill of a group of Lombards in 713 AD who, together with King Frederick II of Swabia, erected a church dedicated to the martyr Miniato. Still present today is the Fortress of Frederick II, which dominates the highest point of the San Miniato hill and is the main element that distinguishes and identifies the Borgo. From its apex one enjoys a spectacular 360 degree view and, on a clear day, one's gaze reaches as far as the sea. Later, even Napoleon visited the Borgo, both because of the Buonaparte family's San Miniato origins and to receive the family's certificate of nobility.
San Miniato has numerous historical monuments, all either restored or reconstructed, that testify to its ancient roots, including the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta.
Throughout the year, it is the venue for numerous festivities such as the Mostra Mercato Nazionale del Tartufo Bianco delle Colline Sanminiatesi (National White Truffle Exhibition of the Sanminiatesi Hills), the theatre festival and numerous music festivals.
