I luoghi della 1000 Miglia 2024 – Leg 4

LEG 4 – FRIDAY 14 JUNE

Civita Castellana, Amelia, Orvieto, Solomeo, Passignano sul Trasimeno, Sinalunga, Asciano, Siena, Radda in Chianti, Prato e San Lazzaro di Savena

With the fourth leg, the crews will head for Civita Castellana, Amelia, Orvieto and then Solomeo, the venue for lunch. After the break, it will be the turn of Passignano sul Trasimeno, Sinalunga, Asciano, Siena, Radda in Chianti and Prato, which will precede the finish in San Lazzaro di Savena (Bologna).

Amelia

Nature, history, art and good food

Nestled in the enchanted landscape of the Amerini mountains, Amelia allows visitors to experience nature, history, art and good food. A very ancient city known by the name of Ameria, it was certainly among the first Italic centres. Cato, quoted by Pliny in his Naturalis historia, states that the city was founded 963 years before the war of the Romans against Perseus, king of Macedon, and thus in 1134 BC.

Amelia bears numerous testimonies to its past that are still perfectly legible today as one walks through its fascinating and well-preserved historical centre. If the remarkable polygonal walls constitute the most important monument, the gates, the architecture of the Renaissance buildings, the churches, tell us of the various eras experienced from the pre-Roman to the modern age.

The archaeological museum, which houses valuable archaeological artefacts found in the tombs, along the Via Amerina and in the numerous rustic villas, as well as in the necropolises of the area, also preserves the bronze statue of Germanicus Julius Caesar, a masterpiece of Roman bronze work. Monumental is the Roman cistern in Piazza Matteotti, consisting of ten rooms and superb evidence of Roman hydraulic engineering, the remains of the ancient theatre, the baths at Palazzo Farrattini and the domus, including that of Palazzo Venturelli with mosaics from the Hadrianic period.

Amelia, Land of the 1000 Miglia since 2010, thanks to the Driver and Mechanic Rinaldo Tinarelli who raced several editions of the race and to the Girotti Figs, official product of the Race in the 1930s, brought to Brescia by the Terni Driver Mario Umberto Borzacchini.

Orvieto

A jewel set on a tuff cliff

Art, culture and traditions accompany you every step of the way in Orvieto, a jewel set on a tuff cliff in Umbria, the green heart of Italy that chronicles a history of over 3,000 years. The city is undoubtedly known worldwide for the Duomo and the Pozzo di San Patrizio. The Duomo, an incredible expression of Gothic-Romanesque architecture, has been called the “Golden Lily of Cathedrals”’ for the golden mosaics that decorate its unmistakable façade. The Pozzo di San Patrizio (St Patrick’s Well), built in 1527 by Antonio da Sangallo the Younger at the behest of Pope Clement VII, is an authentic masterpiece of engineering: dug 54 metres deep into the tuff, it consists of two spiral staircases of 248 steps each, one for descending and one for ascending, that do not meet. Orvieto is a treasure chest that never ceases to amaze with the Torre del Moro and the Palazzo del Popolo, symbols of the power of the ancient Municipality, or with its fascinating medieval quarter where the church of San Giovenale, the oldest in the city, stands out. From the Etruscan period, then, we have numerous testimonies: among the most important are the Necropolis of the Crocefisso del Tufo and the “Fanum Voltumnae”, the ancient federal sanctuary of the Etruscans, discovered after a series of important excavation campaigns in the Campo della Fiera area.

Passignano sul Trasimeno 

The Race between the village and the shores of the lake

The historic cars of 1000 Miglia will arrive in the village overlooking the northern shores of Lake Trasimeno.

Siena

1000 Miglia in the city of the Palio 

A timeless example of a medieval jewel, the city of the Palio still lives suspended between past and present. Its artistic and cultural heritage is so rich and unique that it has been a Unesco World Heritage Site since 1995, thanks to its historic centre and that drawing room, Piazza Il Campo. Today, Siena earns another important medal in its “race” towards tomorrow: it is the first Italian and world city of art to be certified as a sustainable destination according to the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC-D). This is yet another demonstration of how, despite the strength of its traditions made up not only of history, districts and architecture, but also of gastronomic excellence and a culture of “savoir faire” linked to craftsmanship and small workshops that animate the city centre today as in the past, it is capable of preserving itself by projecting itself into the future.

Prato

In the centre of the northern area of Tuscany

Prato lies in a strategic position in the centre of the northern area of Tuscany, near other major cities of art in the region.

The town is especially known for its textile production, which has played a key role in the economic and social development of the area since the Middle Ages. Besides this aspect, the city offers historical and artistic attractions of great importance, through an itinerary that goes from the Middle Ages to Contemporary Art.

In the historical centre, the Emperor’s Castle (evidence of Swabian architecture unique in central-northern Italy) and the Duomo where the venerated relic of the Sacred Girdle of the Virgin Mary is kept. Next, the Palazzo Pretorio Museum, the Basilica di S. Maria delle Carceri by Giuliano da Sangallo; these buildings and the city museums house works by great masters such as Agnolo Gaddi, Paolo Uccello, Filippo and Filippino Lippi, Donatello and Michelozzo and other great artists. The Museo del Tessuto, an expression of the city’s textile history, preserves samples and documents from the 5^th century to today. The Centro Pecci is an important point of reference for contemporary Art worldwide.

The provincial territory offers Etruscan necropolis in Carmignano, medieval villages, the splendid Medici Villas of Poggio a Caiano and Artimino UNESCO World Heritage Sites, not to mention the beauty of the Montalbano hills, rich in vineyards and olive groves, or the evocative scenery of the Calvana massif, Monteferrato and Val di Bisenzio.

San Lazzaro di Savena 

1000 Miglia in te city of Canè 

The 1000 Miglia will arrive in San Lazzaro di Savena in Piazza Bracci, passing through the Parco dei Gessi Bolognesi e Calanchi dell’Abbadessa, a protected natural area recently included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, along the stunning and lush green Val di Zena.

The best calling card for a town that, despite being on the outskirts of Bologna and crossed by the Via Emilia, just a stone’s throw from the ring road and the motorway, takes pride in an extraordinary natural and environmental heritage.

The park is part of the UNESCO Heritage, especially for the important karst system that characterises it and makes it a uniquely European environment.

The natural park, the Savena, Idice and Zena watercourses, which are important biological corridors, and a vast and well-kept heritage of urban greenery make it a true garden right next to Bologna.

As a matter of fact, San Lazzaro di Savena borders the main town, whose centre can be easily reached thanks to a punctual and efficient public transport system – by bus and train.

Chosen in the past by aristocrats from Bologna to spend the summer there, several marvellous villas bear witness to this, the best known of which is Villa Cicogna attributed to Jacopo Barozzi known as il Vignola. San Lazzaro boasts some illustrious citizens such as Alberto Tomba, Cesare Cremonini, Gianni Morandi, Cristina D’Avena and the writer Loriano Macchiavelli.

Not forgetting San Lazzaro residents Giuliano Canè and his wife Lucia Galliani, who have won no less than 10 editions of the Mille Miglia!