Abbadia San Salvatore
Today a lively centre in the slopes of Monte Amiata, Abbadia San Salvatore is a perfect example of mountain castle, with Gothic and Renaissance houses whose dark grey colour comes from the volcanic rock of which they are built.
The name of the town is liked to the presence of an important religious centre which grew up in Longobard times.
Its visiting card is the church, with facade consisting of a central body with several orders flanked by two stepped towers, which represent a unique example in Tuscany of Westwerk, one of the most original creations of the Carolingian architect who worked in the late 9th and early 10th Century.
Consecrated in 1036 and modified in part in the 14th Century, the church has a single nave in the shape of a Latin cross and a raised presbytery resting on the cross vaults of the crypt below, dating from the original 8th Century building.
Imbued with rare suggestion, the crypt is a “forest” of 36 columns now beautifully enhanced by the lighting inserted in the flooring.
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