Buriano

An ancient treasure in the hills of Tuscan Maremma

Located a few kilometres from the famous Etruscan finds in Vetulonia, Buriano is a small medieval village nestled between splendid dense, verdant woods and the blue sky of the Maremma.

Built in around the tenth century as a fief of the Aldobrandeschi Counts, who built its first defensive structures, Buriano later passed under the dominion of the local Lambardi family, who controlled it until 1332, when they submitted to Siena, which then surrendered it to the Pisans.

In 1398, Buriano was conquered by the Appiani of Piombino and became part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in 1815.

The main attractions to visit include Aldobrandesca Fortress, an ancient stronghold that overlooked the humid valley where Lake Prile once flowed.

Of the original castle structure, a complex with a polygonal base, a fortified enclosure and internal courtyard, now only the imposing ruins, some remains of the wall and an entrance door remain.

The central square is the town meeting point and contains a famous white monument dedicated to the fallen of the Great War.

Also highly recommended is a visit to the Church of Santa Maria Assunta, of Roman-Gothic foundation, with a rectangular structure and trussed roof. A relic (the arm) of San Guglielmo, the town’s patron saint, is kept inside the church in an embossed and chiselled silver reliquary.

Each year, on the second Sunday of Easter, a procession is held in the saint’s honour, with exposition of his relic, starting from the village and arriving at the hermitage (4 km away), built in 1597 in the place where the Blessed Virgin appeared to San Guglielmo, who took refuge here before founding the monastery of Malavalle.