Tuscan Villa with Pool, Artist’s Studio, Spectacular Views
Picture an enchanted place on a lofty hillside in the heart of Tuscany, a stone villa dating to the sixteenth century with cypresses, olive trees, a gorgeous pool and four seasons worth of views to take your breath away.
The villa in the ancient hamlet of Oliveto near the town of Loro Ciuffenna is at the geographical center of Italy. The property is owned by Burton Anderson, author of “Vino” and other books on Italian wine and food.
The house, built on three levels, is surrounded by terraced gardens with olive and fruit trees. In addition to the main house, a separate vine-covered studio provides a secluded work place for a writer or artist. A splendid swimming pool is enclosed by stone walls, hedges and a pergola canopy. A mountain spring provides an abundant independent source of water.
The front terrace, shaded by a wisteria pergola, affords sweeping views over the vast Arno valley and the mountains of Chianti, a landscape of vineyards, olive groves, meadows and woods whose multihued greens enhance venerable hill towns, castles and abbeys.
The hamlet of Oliveto, which seems to date to Etruscan times, was a fortified village in the Middle Ages, a strategic vantage point on terraced slopes of the Pratomagno mountain range at 550 meters/1,800 feet of altitude. The ancient citadel, built in stone, comprised a patriarchal mansion surrounded by houses, stables, a chapel and a mill for pressing oil from the groves of olives that gave the place its name. Oliveto is the modern spelling of the old Tuscan Uliveto.
In the 15th and 16th centuries, when the Medici ruled the Republic of Tuscany, Oliveto was a feudal domain of families by the names of Bindi and Manneschi. Their fortress mansion, known as il “Castellaccio d’Uliveto, bears a coat of arms depicting six mounds topped by an olive tree. They also built the chapel of San Sebastiano—the martyred Saint Sebastian—which overlooks the village.
The Anderson villa, on the panoramic southern side of the hamlet, bears two stone carvings of the Oliveto crest dating to the 16th century. One is on the front of the house and the other, on the fireplace mantel, is dated 1583 and signed with the initials R B.
On the property was the village frantoio, the ancient olive oil mill, though all that remains of the mill are a massive granite millstone and grindstone. On terraces below the house are olive trees that provide excellent extra virgin oil bottled under the villa's own “Ulivoio” label.
A stone lane through Oliveto leads to the Buca delle Fate, the mouth of a deep, narrow cavern, which in antiquity was known as a trysting place of the Fates. The hamlet is surrounded by woods of oak, chestnut, ilex and Mediterranean brush. Adjacent hiking trails lead into the Pratomagno mountains noted for wildlife and mushrooms. The peak called Il Croce di Pratomagno, at 1,591 meters/5,220 feet, is often covered with snow in winter.
Today, Oliveto, whose architectural and scenic heritage is protected by the Italian Fine Arts Commission, groups eight privately owned homes in a splendidly rustic setting.
The location is a convenient hub for trips to centers of art and culture and hotels and restaurants renowned for authentic Tuscan cooking. An hour by train or car and you’re savoring the majesty of Florence, the art of Leonardo and Michelangelo, Renaissance cathedrals and palaces and some of the world’s finest shopping and dining.
Airports at Florence and Pisa are an easy drive away. For that matter, so is Rome, where you can linger over lunch and be home in time for dinner.
To the southeast lies Siena, a treasure trove of art and architecture, where the medieval Palio horse race is run in the Piazza del Campo. Nearby are the wine centers of Montalcino, Montepulciano and San Gimignano, whose towers have made it the quintessential hill town. To the south lies Arezzo, famous for frescoes by Piero della Francesca, as well as linens and leather goods. Oliveto overlooks “Fashion Valley” where Prada and Ferragamo are the big names.
Among many places of interest are Cortona, Pienza, Panzano in Chianti, Badia a Coltibuono, and Castello di Brolio. Everywhere you go the food and wine are delicious, the people gracious and welcoming, the settings and scenery exclusively and magically Tuscan.
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