Lucignano, a small suburb in southern Tuscany, is one of the most extraordinary examples of medieval urbanism because of its elliptical plant with concentric rings. Its plant is developed trough an interesting spatial and functional articulation, between the "rich street" (Borgo ricco), now Via Matteotti looking south and bright and ample where the residential buildings built by the nobility rise and "poor street", now Via Roma (called Corsica) looking north, northwest where smaller houses rise, characterised by poor buildings and built by the lower classes of the town. The spectacular position of Lucignano, 414 metres above sea level, overlooking the Valdichiana, and on the main route between Siena and Arezzo, has given it strategic importance since its origins and meant that it was continually at the center of battles between the surrounding territories ad a medieval castle. For the three centuries from 1200 to 1500, Lucignano passed continually between the giurisdiction of Siena, Arezzo, Firenze and Perugia. Lucignano received the gift of Perugia's coat-of-arms, (still used today), the winged friffon, to which she added a star to show the hilltop position of the town. The name Lucignano probably originates from a Roman castrum founded by the consul Licinio, and which became known as Lucinianum after the conquest by Lucio Silla in the 1st century B.C.. Important archaeological finds indicate that there were also Etruscan settlements in the surrounding areas. The present day layout of Lucignano originated around the year 1200, and was completed in the 16th century, when the summit of the hill where the castle was originally was transformed into a center of religious and political power. In 1300, under the rule of Siena, the fortifications were completed with the city walls and three city gates (1371): Porta S. Giusto, Porta S. Giovanni and the so-called Porta Murata. The fortress with its two towers was also built furing this period. When Lucignano came under the rule of the Medici in 1554, a number of major additions were made to the town, including the beginning of work on a new fortress, attributed to Bernardo Puccini, the Sanctuary of the Madonna della Querce (1568) outside the town limits, attributed to Vasari, the Convent of the Cappuccines (ca.1580), the Church of the Misericordia (1582) and the Collegiate Church (1594). Today, Lucignano still maintains intact its fascinating atmosphere of an ancient village where agricoltural and artisan traditions offer the visitor an interesting variety of products ranging from extra-virgin olive oil and honey, the production and restoration of inlaid furniture, the production of ceramics and gold jewellery, work in pietra serena ad travertine, and the making of high quality clothing, alla produced by the highly skilled and professional local population.
