Boccaccio's native village, Certaldo

Certaldo - Today we are going to visit an almost characteristic village, in the province of Florence, in the territory of the Val d'Elsa, the birthplace of the famous Giovanni Boccaccio: we are talking about Certaldo. Medieval village, many historians claim that the Etruscans used to bury the graves of the most important characters underground, thus creating 'fake' hills, which we can still admire today.

Despite its Etruscan and Roman origins, most of the buildings we see today date back to 1164, at the time of the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. Entering the village, we pass through the ancient gates and admire the Gothic-style Porta Alberti and the Porta del Sole, main access to the Castle, decorated with the Medici coat of arms. The center of life in the village today is via Boccaccio, overlooked by the main church, the Palazzo del Power, the Palazzo Pretorio and the Loggias del Mercato; Palazzo Stiozzi Ridolfi, the Church of Saints Jacopo and Filippo inside which is the tomb of Boccaccio. The representative monument of Certaldo is undoubtedly the ancient residence of the Counts Alberti. We conclude by passing through the street of the Artists, where it is natural to imagine the very young Boccaccio walking among knights and ladies.