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Roccastrada is located in a beautiful position overlooking the Maremma, at an altitude of 475 meters in the Grosseto Metalliferous Hills. The town is located in a panoramic position towards Monte Amiata and the plain of the Ombrone and its tributaries. Roccastrada was since the Middle Ages an important mining center where there were copper and silver mines.
AN ANCIENT FORTRESS OF THE ALDOBRANDESCHI
Roccastrada developed starting from the Middle Ages as a fortress of the Aldobrandeschi. In the fourteenth century the Republic of Siena also extended its control over Roccastrada and maintained it until the definitive conquest of the Sienese republic by Florence in 1555. From this year onwards Roccastrada became a permanent part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.
The town has a medieval layout and has the remains of the medieval walls built in the 12th century by the Aldobrandeschis. The symbol of the village is the clock tower with merlons built in the fourteenth century but much modified after the reconstruction that took place after the Second World War. The parish church of San Niccolò or San Nicola dates back to the 13th century, but its facade is recent. Inside there are two 16th century frescoes by Giovanni Maria Tolosani depicting a “Madonna with Child” and an “Annunciation” and a beautiful 16th century baptismal font. In the Church of the Madonna delle Grazie there is another fresco by Giovanni Maria Tolosani depicting the “Madonna with Child”. The town also houses a small museum of vines and wine.
In the surroundings of Roccastrada there are some small but enchanting medieval villages such as those of Montemassi, Roccatederighi, Torniella and Sticciano. Along the road that leads to Ribolla, in the locality of Casacce, there are the imposing remains of the Giugnano abbey founded in the 9th century. The territory of Roccastrada is located within the technological and archaeological park of the Grosseto Metalliferous Hills. A park created above all to recover, conserve and promote the environmental, mining, historical and cultural heritage of the Metalliferous Hills.
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