Tuscan Traveler

While visiting the Musei del Cibo in the region around Parma, a visitor will find a rewarding short detour to the Balsamic Vinegar Museum (Museo del Balsamico Tradizionale) in Spilamberto, less than ten miles southeast of Modena.

Casks used to ferment Traditional Balsamic Vinegar

Traditional Balsamic Vinegar (Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale) is produced in the area around Modena, which was once the ancient lands of the ducal family of Este.

Acelto Balsamico Tradizionale of Dukes of Este (18th cent.)

With no addition of any aromatic substances, Traditional Balsamic Vinegar is obtained from cooked grape-must, which is slowly turned into a rich, think, sweet deep caramel-colored liquid from natural fermentation and progressive concentration through a very long (10 to 100 years) ageing process in a set of progressively smaller casks of different kinds of wood.

Traditional Balsamic Vinegar is a deep, dark and bright brown color with a smooth thick density. The taste is a well balanced sweet and sour that changes depending on the types of wood used for the aging.

The main difference between the Traditional Balsamic Vinegar and all other vinegars is not only the material from which it is obtained, but most of all the alchemy of time together with the knowledge and know-how of a tradition of ancient origin.

The so-called balsamic vinegar, found in the U.S. at neighborhood supermarkets or on the table of most Italian restaurants, is frequently made of a splash of Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale mixed with a large quantity of regular red wine vinegar, or worse, is sweetened red wine vinegar with caramel coloring.

Copper-lined Pot used to Cook Grape-must for Balsamic Vinegar

The Museo Balsamico Tradizionale provides a comprehensive explanation, through both an English-language film and rooms filled with ancient and modern equipment, of the deceptively simple process for making this sublime nectar.

Bottles of Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena

The museum is compact, but a visitor emerges with an understanding of the history, culture and pride of the producers located in a narrow a strip of land in the Italy’s Emilia Region. The museum displays reveal true complexity of the product’s preparation that time and experience have made perfect; argues for the need to protect its name, control its genuineness and regulate its production so as to avoid any form of industrialization.

Museo del Balsamico Tradizionale

Villa Comunale Fabriani
Via Roncati, 28
41057 Spilamberto (Mo)

tel. +39 059 781614
fax +39 059 7861913

e-mail: info@museodelbalsamicotradizionale.org

Hours:

Tuesday to Sunday 9.30 – 13.00 / 15.00 – 19.00

The Museum is closed for holidays, including December 23 – 25, and January 1.

Tickets:

€ 2,00
€ 4,00 w/ tasting (only on Sunday morning or by reservation)
€ 1,00 for seniors over 65
Free for minors under 18

Guided Visit:

Only with prior reservation: info@museodelbalsamicotradizionale.org

Web Site:

http://www.museodelbalsamicotradizionale.org

Despite the fact that it may seem like carrying coals to Newcastle or running the sprinkler in a downpour, the arrival of many of American Greg Wyatt’s sculptures to Florence’s Piazza Signoria and the Sala d’Arme in the Palazzo Vecchio is a welcome change from the offerings of Giambologna, Cellini and Ammannati.

Ammannati greets Greg Wyatt

Greg Wyatt, a native of Grand View-on-Hudson, New York, presently holds the position of Sculptor-in-Residence at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York City. Cast bronze is his primary medium of artistic expression. Dr. Anthony Janson, editor of W.H. Janson’s History of Art, has stated that Wyatt’s work is based on the philosophy of “spiritual realism.”

Mr. and Mrs. Wyatt watch the placement of Two Rivers

Yesterday, Wyatt’s mammoth sixteen-foot bronze, Two Rivers, said to symbolize the creative relationship forged between the world of Florence’s Arno River and that of New York’s Hudson River, arrived in Piazza Signoria from a foundry in France. It will remain in the shadow of the Palazzo Vecchio until November 24, 2009. Wyatt has donated the statue to the City of Florence where it will take its place among other modern works in Piazza Poggi.

Detail of Two Rivers by Greg Wyatt

Inside the Sala d’Arme a number of Wyatt’s smaller works will be on display for free viewing by the public from September 5 to November 24. The excellent exhibition catalog (with Italian/English translation by Tuscan Traveler’s own Francesca Boni) will be on sale. The opening ceremony will take place at 7:30pm on Saturday, September 5.

Two Rivers in the shadow of the Palazzo Vecchio

An interesting interview with Greg Wyatt where he discusses his artistic influences and philosophy, as well as the process of creating his bronze sculptures can be seen online.

The Museum of Prosciutto and Cured Meat Products of Parma is located in the small city Langhirano, west of Parma,in the site of the former cattle market between the historic center and the Parma River.

Savory cured meats hand-made in Parma

For centuries and still today the area south of the Po River and north of the Apennine ridge of mountains, is famed for its prosciutto, cured hams.  It is a land rich in oaks yielding acorns for feeding pigs; guaranteed a supply of special preserving salt from thermal springs; and blessed by the marine winds from the Mediterranean Sea for drying the savory haunches.

Museum of Prosciutto and Cured Meats of Parma

The Museum of the Prosciutto and cured Meats of Parma is dedicated to these gifts of nature, to the gastronomic culture that developed prosciutto, to its history and to the generations of people who have faithfully passed on its secrets.

Inside the museum, there is an exhibition detailing the production of Parma’s prized cured meats. You can also follow the changes in production methods from ancient pork butchery to modern technologies.

Prosciutto hand-made in 1930 using methods still practiced today

There are eight sections in the museum composed of photographs, historic documents, machinery, and audio-visual productions. The museum strives to define the region, the pig breeds used for certain products, the historic and political role of salt, pork butchery, and the many types of traditional Parma salumi (cured meats). There is also information about importance of the Prosciutto di Parma Consortium and their work to safeguard quality.

High praise for the cured meats of Parma

A visit to the museum ends in the tasting room where a variety of sliced meats and local products are served.  For a very special afternoon, add a tasting of local wines.

Museum of Prosciutto and Cured Meats of Parma

Via Bocchialini, 7
Langhirano (PR)

Open to the public:

From March 1 to 8 December
Saturday, Sunday and holidays: 10.00 – 18.00
Monday to Friday: by appointment for groups

From December to February:  Closed

Ticket Prices:

Full:  € 3.00
Reduced:  € 2.00 groups (minimum 15 people), adults over 65 years
Reduced for schools:  € 1.50 schools and children from 6 to 12 years
Free:  disabled and their escorts, children under 6 years

Sampling of Prosciutto di Parma:

Full:  € 3.00
Reduced:  € 1.50 (for children under 15 years)

Guided tours

For groups of up to 25 people: € 20.00 in addition to the ticket price – reservation necessary.

Museum Shop

Publications and typical products of the territory.

Information and reservations (required for groups and schools):

IAT Torrechiara: Tel. +39-0521-355009 – Fax. +39-0521-355821

Museum of Prosciutto: Tel. +39-0521.864324

E-mail: prenotazioni.prosciutto@museidelcibo.it

Web Site: www.museidelcibo.it

Northwest of Parma, on the edge of the small town of Soragna, is the oldest of the new food museums, musei del cibo, organized in the last five years in north-central Italy. The Parmesan Cheese Museum, Museo del Parmigiano Reggiano, is worth a detour, especially if you pair it with a visit to a modern Parmesan cheese factory in Soragna.

Parmigiano Reggiano - The King of Cheeses

The famed quality of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese is the excellent and well-balanced result of many factors, from the particular lushness of pasturelands and milk, to the artisan techniques of production (unchanged for seven centuries), to natural ripening and maturing processes (a total absence of preservatives, additives, anti-fermenting agents or colorants), together with the rigorous quality controls imposed by the Consortium of Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese (begun in 1934).  The Consortium brought together the cheese producers working in the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Mantova and Bologna, which constitutes the protected production zone.

The latest statistics (2002) counted 547 Consortium members, who relied on 270,000 cows belonging to 7,000 farmers for their milk. Annually about 409,425,000 gallons of milk are used to make 245,691,900 pounds of cheese, for a total of 2,937,535 wheels. Between 88-90% of these wheels are eaten in Italy. An average of 90,000 wheels are exported every year to the USA. Producing a pound of Parmesan takes about two gallons of milk and each wheel weighs an average of 66 pounds.

Museum of Parmesan Cheese - Soragna, Italy

Housed in the only surviving mid-19th century round casello of the cheese works once owned by the Prince Meli Lupi, the Parmesan Cheese Museum has three rooms. In the first, the various production phases of the cheese, which is only made between April 15 and November 15 when the animal feed (mixed grasses and clover) is at its best and the milk at its richest, are explained through the display of equipment and hundreds of utensils necessary for hand-making and distributing this “king of cheese.” An 18th-century copper cauldron, an old milk wagon that was pulled by hand, an early steam boiler to heat the milk in the cauldron uniformly, and an early 20th-century churn are included in the collection.

Copper Pots for making Parmesan Cheese

In the second display room, called Sala della Salamoia or Curing or Salting Room, are panels illustrating the history of Parmesan, which was mentioned by Columella, Varro, and Martial, and seems to go back to ancient Roman times, but the first surviving historical documents date to Parma’s Abbey of S. Martino dei Bocci in the late 1290s. At first the wheels were only 3.2 inches high in contrast with the 10 inches of today. They were covered with salt instead of immersed in salt water. Boccaccio’s Decameron (1348-49) boasts the cheese’s first literary reference: in the third story of the eighth day, the poet poked fun at the gullibility of Calandrino, one of his characters, by having him believe that in Bengodi, in Parmesan country, there was a mountain consisting entirely of grated cheese and that the people who lived there did nothing, but cook macaroni and ravioli, which they rolled down the slopes so that the pasta arrived at the bottom coated with fragrant cheese.

Floor Plan of the Museo del Parmigiano Reggiano

The third room, the Sala del Latte or Milk Room, is devoted to the ageing process – at least two years (vecchio or old), better yet three (stravecchio or very old), and preferably four  (stravecchione or the oldest) – and to the history of the Consorzio or the consortium, the producers’ co-operative.  An excellent English language film presents the history and process of making Parmesan cheese.

A tasting of Parmesan cheese is offered after your visit.

A quaint little private farm museum is situated in the modern part of the building and is open only if the proprietor is there.

The Museum of Parmigiano-Reggiano:

c/o Corte Castellazzi,
Via Volta, 5
Soragna (Parma)

Opening Hours:

From March 1 to 8 December
Saturday, Sunday and holidays: 10.00 – 13.00, 15.00 – 18:00
Monday to Friday, only by booking

From December to February
Closed.  Access to the museum is possible only by booking.

Fee, including tasting:

€ 5 single ticket,
€ 4 groups over 15 people and over 65’s,
€ 3 reduced ticket for obligatory schools (accompanying teachers free) and children between 6 – 12 years,
Free handicapped entrance with accompaniers, accompanying teachers, journalists and children under 6.

Guided Tours:

On booking you can also book a guided tour.  As well as the entrance ticket each tour costs € 20 for a maximum of 25 people

Booking for Groups:

Telephone:  +39.0524.596129

E-mail: prenotazioni.parmigiano@museidelcibo.it

Web Site:

www.museidelcibo.it

For garden-lovers and those who just enjoy the vistas of the classic Tuscan countryside, an afternoon touring the gardens of the famed La Foce estate, two hours south of Florence, provides the impetus for many that brings them back to stay in one of the many renovated farm houses or even in the villa once occupied by the author Iris Origo.

The Villa of La Foce

La Foce lies on the hills overlooking the Val d’Orcia, a beautiful valley in southern Tuscany. Midway between Florence and Rome, it is also within easy reach of Siena, Arezzo, Perugia, Assisi, Orvieto.

From Etruscan times (a burial-place dating from the 7th century BC to the 2nd AD has been recently excavated on the property), the settlement of La Foce has been continuously inhabited for many centuries. In medieval times, ts strategic position on the historical Via Francigena leading to Rome greatly increased its significance. The Villa itself (now available for rent) was built in the late 15th century as a hostel for pilgrims and merchants traveling on this busy road.

In 1924 the clay-covered hills were bought by Antonio and Iris Origo, who dedicated their lives to bringing progress and social change to the then poverty-ridden area, building a profitable farm on the enormous property. Today the estate – a combination of woods, cultivated fields and olive groves – is run by the Origo daughters, Benedetta and Donata. The garden, is an ideal combination between the landscape and 20th century architecture, blending Italian and English traditions and taste.

The Geometric Italian Garden

The Origos engaged an English architect, Cecil Pinsent, who had previously done extensive work on Bernard Berenson’s Villa I Tatti in Florence, to restructure the main buildings and create a large garden at La Foce. The vast garden was conceived to enhance the Renaissance house and expand the spectacular view over the valley of the Orcia and the Amiata mountain. The harmony between buildings, garden and nature makes La Foce an ideal example of Tuscany’s architectural and cultural evolution.

The English Flower Garden

The garden grew gradually, between 1925 and 1939. The villa is surrounded by a formal Italian garden, which is divided into geometrical ‘rooms’ by box hedges with lemon trees in terracotta pots. Travertine stairs lead to the rose garden and a winding wisteria-covered pergola bordered by lavender hedge. Gentle informal terraces climb up the hill, where cherry trees, pines and cypresses grow among wild broom, thyme and rosemary, and a long cypress avenue leads to a 17th-century stone statue. Through the wood, a path joins the garden and the family cemetery, considered one of Pinsent’s best creations.

The Distant Serpentine Road is on the La Foce Estate

Near La Foce, are the Renaissance and medieval towns of Pienza, Montepulciano, Monticchiello and Montalcino. The countryside abounds in lovely walks among woods and the characteristic crete senesi (clay hills) and famous wines such as the Vino Nobile and Brunello can be tasted in the local cellars or accompanying the delicious southern Tuscan cuisine.

The La Foce Cemetery for the Origo and Estate Families

Opening hours: the garden is open to the public every Wednesday afternoon. Guided tours leave from the Fattoria courtyard every hour from 3 to 7 PM (April-September) and 3 to 5 PM (October-March). For more information about the gardens and the vacation rentals on the estate see the La Foce website.

Enzo Ferrari was the man who said the Mille Miglia is “La corsa piu bella del mondo” – the most beautiful race in the world. This year, a decade after his death, he certainly would have agreed because a Ferrari won the 2009 race with Carlo and Bruno Ferrari in a 1927 Bugatti Type 37. A vintage Ferrari also came in second with a 1926 Bugatti Type 35A.

2009 Mille Miglia Winning Car

Any fine car enthusiast (or someone trying to make a Ferrari fan happy) who happens to be visiting or driving by Modena should take a detour to Maranello and visit the Galleria Ferrari Museum. Opened in 2005 for those who wish to get into the factory or on to the test track, but can’t, the Galleria Ferrari is a fully satisfying visual and learning experience for Formula One and sports car aficionados and a fun time for those who are not.

The first floor is a celebration of the Grand Prix – from Ferrari’s first Formula One car to the 2004 cars that gave Michael Schumacher his championship title. The cars are displayed as if in pit lane to provide a behind-the-scenes experience of Formula One. Nearby is an homage to Enzo Ferrari, including his office, which was moved, piece by piece, to the museum.

But Ferrari’s racing prowess is not limited to Formula One. A range of historic sports cars, displayed around a dramatic amphitheater, represents its many successes in road racing.

The second floor is dedicated to Ferrari engineering, including displays on aerodynamic performance and wind tunnels. There is an entire wall of Formula One engines, tracing their development from the 1950s to the present day. Product development is also represented by styling bucks, development models and the tools used by Ferrari designers.

It is also here that the newest Ferrari models are on display, including the Ferrari Superamerica and the Ferrari F430, alongside classic models such as the 365 GTB/4Daytona, the Ferrari 288 GTO and the Ferrari Enzo. There will probably be a line to try out the virtual racetrack machine.

A cinema shows films and videos from history of Ferrari, and don’t miss the photo display of the many famous people who have owned Ferraris and visited the factory. Of course, as you leave, there is a gift shop and a cafe.

The Galleria Ferrari is open seven days a week from 09.30 to 18.00.  It is located at Via Dino Ferrari, 43 in Maranello (20 miles south of Modena). Email: galleria@ferrari.it 
 Phone: +39 0536 943-204 
Fax: +39 0536 949-714 Tickets: 9-13 euro.

Not only Ferrari

Nearby, outside the main gates to Ferrari itself, is the Ferrari Store and close by is Ristorante Montana. The Montana not only boasts its own display of Ferrari Formula One memorabilia (don’t miss the hedge cut in the shape of a Formula One Ferrari), it also is alongside the Ferrari Fiorano test track, so meals can be accompanied by the sound of a Ferrari Formula One car at full speed. For an “only in Italy ” experience click on the “Table Napkins” link on the Montana’s web site.

I still remember the day in Panzano when I almost plowed down Dario Cecchini, the famed butcher, who was standing in the intersection blowing a horn that once graced the side of an ancient automobile – back in the times when the horn had to be sounded to get the horses and carriages out of the way. Dario was garbed in festive red pants, yellow shirt, red vest, and white apron with a red bandana at his neck. He had a glass of red wine in his other hand.

Dario greets the Mille Miglia

Just as Dario blew two long welcoming notes, three antique racing cars crested the hill, tooted to Dario and raced off into the valley to Greve. I got a glass of Dario’s wine and a small plate of bread, lardo and salami from Dario’s butcher shop and joined the crowd of spectators in Panzano’s main piazza.

The Mille Miglia had come to town.

This year it will run from May 13 to 17.

Anyone living in or visiting Italy next week has the chance to be part of the pageantry of this annual road rally of vintage sport and touring cars. The 27th Mille Miglia, a historic replay of one the world’s most famous motor races (the original race ran between 1927 and 1957), is a three-day rally that starts in Brescia, Lombardia, travels to Rome, winding through the countryside of the Veneto, Marche and Umbria, and returning through Tuscany (Pienza, Buonconvento, Siena, Val d’Elsa, Monteriggioni, Poggibonsi, Barberino, Tavernelle and San Casciano) and Florence. Over three hundred antique racing and tourist-class cars will pause for a break in Siena and Florence in mid-afternoon on May 16.

Mille Miglia takes to the back roads

Mille Miglia fever still infects international vintage automobile enthusiasts so that every year hundreds of entry applications from dozens of countries are sent to the organizing committee, which has to choose the final 375 competitors admitted to the 2009 competition.

Possession of a veteran car does not mean that the automobile has all the necessary qualifications for admission. Only cars built during the period of the classic Mille Miglia, 1927 -1957, are allowed to come to the starting line in Brescia. Preference is given to cars that have a particular racing history or which have actually participated in a previous Mille Miglia.

Each car must carry two qualified drivers, one of whom usually acts as navigator. Taking part in the Mille Miglia has always been considered an achievement in itself, but managing to finish the arduous course takes the experience to another level.

The Mille Miglia highlights ancient villages, city centers, countryside and mountains. From the Lombardia and Veneto plains to the countryside of the Marche and of Umbria, Lazio, Tuscany and Emilia, from the Romagna sea to the steep snowy slopes of Mount Terminillo and, on the way back, up again across the Futa and Raticosa passes. The rally also visits almost unknown tiny villages of medieval origin and the famous city squares, including the Campo in Siena and Piazza Strozzi in Florence.

Winner of Mille Miglia 2008 - 1928 Alfa Romeo 6C 1500 Super Sport

Among the cars in this year’s Mille Miglia is the Mercedes 3300 SLR, the BMW 328 Coupe, both the Ferrari 340A and 212 Spider Vignale, the Alfa Romeo 1750 GS and the Alfa 1500 SS Spider, both the OM 665 TT and the 665 S, the Bugatti T35A and T40GS, the Jaguar C-Type and D-Type, the Maserati A6 GCS and Maserati Monofaro, the Aston Martin DB3 Spider, the Fiat 1100 S, the 1954 Autobleu 750 MM, and the egg-shaped Isetta. Among the most rare cars are the Gilco Panhard 1100 Sport of 1952 and the Chrysler 1951 Saratoga.

Spectators enjoy the pageantry of the Mille Miglia whether they understand the detailed lineage of the vintage automobiles or not. Along the route residents and spectators hold outdoor parties, wave flags, blow horns, ring bells and cheer the racers onward. Car enthusiasts will have the chance in Siena and Florence to examine the cars and talk with the drivers.

Mille Miglia 2009 Route

For more information in English (not much) and Italian, review the official web site at 1000milglia.com .  A trailer for the 2009 Mille Miglia and another video of the history of the race make good viewing.

  

The Sun Doesn't Find the Street

Often Florence can bring on an epic case of claustrophobia. When the Renaissance bankers built their McMansions, they did not widen the medieval streets. Although not many buildings in the historic center are much over ninety feet high (note: come visit soon – the Prime Minister is inviting everyone to add a floor or two to their buildings as one of his recession fixes), Florence often feels much more constricted than New York.  This is especially true to one who grew up in New Mexico. Or even to a claustrophobic Florentine who visited the Land of Enchantment for the first time last year.

Wide open geography is not the only reason a visitor feels light and free in New Mexico as opposed to Florence.  There is also the comfort and conviviality of Southwestern hospitality.  In Florence, both the residents and the tourists must gird themselves every day with armor to deflect the petty incivilities of shopkeepers, waiters, government workers, bank tellers and even people walking or driving the narrow streets.

An Italian in New Mexico

Here is one Florentine native’s story:

Big Sky Over the Arroyo

Mi chiamo Francesca. Probably others have written stuff like this before. I need to do it, so I can avoid paying Dr. Palma some euro to listen to it. I hope I can.

I was in the U.S. in [December 2008] – New York, Connecticut, New Mexico, and Washington D.C.
This is about kindness. This is about smiling.
In Albuquerque (N.M.) I was having a nice morning in a café called The Flying Star, looking at magazines (for free) and looking at people, and having brunch. Oh what’s better than brunch in the US?
But this is not about food, it’s about kindness and service with a smile.
When you get coffee in the U.S. you usually are entitled to have a free ‘refill’. I went over to the counter to ask for my refill and the nice smiling guy, while pouring fresh coffee in my cup, said to me, “Is the coffee finished in the pitcher over at that stand?” He made me understand that I could have done it myself, but still it was a pleasure for him to do it, for free, and in spite of the line behind me. I apologized. He said “no problem”, he smiled again, I smiled. I went to my table and cried.

Fill 'er Up!

Why? Because I had a whole movie of the same scene, had it happened in Florence, my hometown.

Same scene in Florence: “Come? La vole che gli riempia la tazza, oh la un lo vede che c’é una caraffa la’ sul tavolo per riempirsela da soli ? Se la vole il caffe’ la se lo versi! E la ringrazi iddio che la un lo paga! Fosse per me…”  

(Tuscan Traveler’s rough translation:  “What? You want me to refill your cup, don’t you see that a carafe is on the counter for you to do your own refilling? And you thank god that you are not paying for it! Were it for me …”)

Flying Star Cafe

Sometimes a little hospitality is all you need.

The Flying Star is certainly a special haven, not only for Francesca in December, but more recently for me.  Last month, I spent a year-long week watching my younger sister die. Each day, I would walk the half-mile along the arroyo, breathing in the crystal clear air, looking up at the distant mountains, making my way to the Flying Star Café for a glass of fresh-squeezed lemonade, creamy mac and cheese, and/or a slice of cake with strawberries on top.

People Watching at the Flying Star

For an hour I could hide from the horrible reality in the company of friendly helpful strangers, who had no intent to turn tables, offered both healthy and comfort food (as well as Breakfast All Day), and even had snacks for four-legged friends. The magazine racks and the good people watching are extra pluses for those who needed distraction. I certainly did.

Treats for Everyone at the Flying Star

Tuscan Traveler is looking for a Flying Star in Florence.

It’s nearly impossible to find a store in the U.S. that has been in business for 130 years.  And it is getting more and more difficult to find a multi-generational family business in Florence.  But tucked across from the back side of the Duomo is one such place – Nante, a shop of timbri (rubber or ink stamps), cornici (picture frames) and targhe (signs). Mario Nante, grandson of the founder, displays a large sign from his grandfather’s first shop in Rome.  It’s dated 1879 – just after Italy became unified as a country and the capital moved from Florence to Rome.  Mr. Nante was born after his grandfather moved the business to Florence. He remembers when the shop was in Via Strozzi (where the Dolce & Gabbana store is now). He has a decades-old photo of that store. His father moved the business to the crammed location in Piazza del Duomo. It is leased from the preti (priests), Mario Nante says.

Mario Nante's Shop

Nante supplies enamel plaques of every variety: attenti al cane (beware of the dog), WC, toilette, cucina, vietato fumare (no smoking) and hundreds more. Florentine residents are most likely to order brass name tags for mail boxes and doorbells. Aficionados of small antiques and those who are seeking a small unique gift or remembrance of their Italian holiday should take the time needed to find the treasures hidden in Nante’s dark and dusty corners and hanging two and three layers deep on the walls.

Hidden Treasures in a Small Space

Mario Nante smokes his brown hand-rolled cigarettes and sits silent behind the counter, merely telling the tourists that he speaks no English. He’s a bit intimidating even if you speak Italian, unless you are a Florentine who shares his memories of when even the poor dressed with respect in vest, hat, jacket and button-down shirt (”before the Americans in their flip-flops and t-shirts invaded the city”), and when broken Easter cookies (quaresimali) could once be purchased by children from the pastry shop for less, and when storytelling elders were respected before the television “stole away” everyone’s brain. If he chooses to chat, he may tell you of the gazza (magpie) that “fell off the Duomo” one day.  He nursed it back to health at home, where it became a member of the family.

Antiques and Unusual Small Gifts

Nante is open most mornings, but as for the afternoon, he shrugs “Dipende dall’umore” (Depending on my mood). During hunting season he is sure to be off with his dogs in the Tuscan forests. Mr. Nante has no children and is, perhaps, in his 70s, so when he chooses to retire the shop will close for good.

Enameled Signs - Targhe

Nante – Piazza del Duomo 52r

Open Monday through Saturday (perhaps) 9am to 12pm; Closed Sunday.

When a visitor tires of the noisy teeming crowds amid the gray stones of Florence, he or she should board the SITA bus or travel by car to the Florence American Cemetery and Memorial, located south on the roads to Siena and Greve. In the green silence, this historic location is a place to learn about the importance of the American sacrifice in World War II and the reason most Italians still hold the U.S. in high esteem, as well as it is a spot to contemplate the beauty of the Tuscan countryside while thinking of its turbulent past.

American Cemetery in the Tuscan Hills

Don’t merely stop at the base of the hillside monument in the fragrant rose gardens.  Climb or drive to the very summit to the high stele (pillar) topped by the carving of a woman clutching olive branches while flying on the back of an eagle – a symbol of peace that seems ready to soar over the gravesites. There is a Memorial Center with a multi-denominational chapel with a star-filled ceiling to one side and a map created in stone (pietra dura), showing the progress of the allied troops on the other. In between is the wall of the Missing – those brave pilots and seamen whose final resting place was never found.

A Short History of the Allied Italian Campaign

Following the capture of Rome on 4 June 1944, the Allies pursued the enemy northward toward the Po River and the Alps. On July 23, they entered Pisa. Florence fell to the U.S. Fifth Army on 4 August 1944. But some of the worst fighting was left to come.  The Gothic Line, north of Florence, was the final German defensive effort in Italy.

Map of Allied Troop Movements in Northern Italy

In October 1944, a final bid to capture Bologna brought the U.S. Fifth Army to within nine miles of that city. Forced by harsh weather conditions and shortages of personnel and supplies, the advance stalled for the winter, but fighting continued on in the mountains north of Lucca. The segregated African-American troops, known as the Buffalo soldiers, fought valiantly over Christmas 1944 to protect the small hill towns of Sommocolonia and Barga. A fictionalized version of these battles was the subject of the James McBride book and a Spike Lee movie in 2008.

Preceded by massive air and artillery bombardment, the offensive proceeded northward on 9 April 1945. Although the offensive met stiff opposition, Bologna fell to the U.S. Fifth Army on 21 April 1945. With the establishment of a bridgehead across the PoRiver on 23 April 1945, the fleeing forces were pursued rapidly northward. The final week of the war saw wide advances throughout northern Italy. On 2 May 1945, the enemy troops in northern Italy surrendered.

View of the Memorial at the Summit of the Cemetery

The Florence American Cemetery and Memorial

The Florence American Cemetery is one of fourteen permanent American World War II military cemetery memorials erected on foreign soil by the American Battle Monuments Commission.

The countryside and small towns around the cemetery were liberated on 3 August 1944 by the South African Sixth Armored Division, and later became part of the zone of the U.S. Fifth Army. The seven-acre site, a gift of the city of Florence, is located astride the Greve River, and is framed by wooded hills.

4,402 servicemen and women are interred in the cemetery. Most died in the fighting which occurred after the capture of Rome in June 1944. Included among them are casualties of the heavy fighting in the Apennines, shortly before the war’s end.

Pure White Marble Gravestones

In the memorial are many maps of the progress of German occupation of Europe, as well as two maps of the Italian Allied Campaign. The larger of the maps depicts Northern Italy and portrays military operations to the end of the war from the vicinity of the cemetery northward. The military operations as well as the general topography of the area are depicted in a mosaic of colored marbles, known as intarsia, an art form for which Florence is famous. The map is embellished in its upper left-hand corner by twelve shields, each bearing the shoulder insignia of American ground and air units that participated in the fighting in Northern Italy.

The smaller map illustrates the broad outline of military operations that took place in Sicily and then, throughout Italy, beginning in July 1943. The map was executed in scagliola by Emilio Martelli of Florence, a process consisting of drawings in colored artificial compositions that are inlaid in marble and glazed.

The Wall of the Missing behind the Monument to Peace

The Tablets of the Missing, which connect the north and south atria of the memorial, inscribed with the names and particulars of 1,409 Missing in Action in the region or lost or buried at sea, are constructed of travertine stone. Running the full length of the Tablets of the Missing above the names is the following inscription: HERE ARE RECORDED THE NAMES OF AMERICANS WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR COUNTRY AND WHO SLEEP IN UNKNOWN GRAVES.

Within the graves area, the pure white marble (quarried north of Lake Como) headstones radiate in soft arcs, curving inward, following the shape of the gently sloping hills. Two rows of tall plane trees border a walkway that divides the cemetery.

The 69-foot pillar at the top of the walkway is inscribed in English and Italian:

1941-1945
IN PROUD MEMORY OF HER SONS AND
IN HUMBLE TRIBUTE TO THEIR SACRIFICES
THIS MEMORIAL HAS BEEN ERECTED BY
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Travertine Symbol of Peace

The Florence American Cemetery and Memorial is situated approximately 7.5 miles (12 kilometers) south of Florence, Italy, on the west side of the Via Cassia, the main highway between Florence and Siena. The SITA bus from Florence to San Casciano stops at Falciani for visitors to the cemetery.

The Cemetery and Memorial are open daily to the public from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm except December 25 and January 1. A staff member is on duty in the Visitors’ Building to answer questions and escort relatives and groups to grave and memorial sites.