"Exploring the Spiritual and Historical Beauty of Abbey of Vallombrosa in Tuscany"

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Hello dear friends,

Today I was supposed to have an important meeting with clients, but in the end, due to bad weather, everything fell through. So, I thought to myself, why not share a beautiful place with the community instead?

Digging through my photo archive, I realized that somewhat absentmindedly I haven't told you about a place in Tuscany that I was fortunate enough to visit on a guided tour organized by a dear friend of mine. Those who follow me know well that whenever I have the opportunity, I always attend these guided tours, where the guides explain a bit about the place you're about to visit, and perhaps you even discover some secrets about it.

This time, I visited the Abbey of Vallombrosa, located in the municipality of Reggiolo in the province of Florence, actually quite close to Florence, about thirty kilometers away. Essentially, this is a significant spiritual place with historical significance. In fact, this Abbey was founded in 1038 by Saint John Gualbert. At that time, it was common for nobles to retire to a religious life to dedicate themselves to others.

The Abbey you see today isn't the original one from that time; it's the new church that was expanded in the 1200s, and in the 1400s, Abbot Francesco Altoviti also built the large cloister, the sacristy, and the tower.

As you can see from some photos I took externally, the abbey is predominantly surrounded by woods, in a very important naturalistic landscape. Typically, these places are always built somewhat away from the city or town.

Inside the church, there are very precious works of art, including the altarpiece by Perugino and a panel by Raffaelino del Garbo. It's normal for these abbeys to be so beautifully adorned inside, although in reality, the saint who founded this religious order envisioned a return to a more evangelical poverty of the church, which probably got a bit lost over the years.

The monastery also has a very large library, which we didn't have the opportunity to visit, but I've heard they are considering setting up a museum route inside the library as well, which I think is a wonderful idea because these ancient libraries are rich in culture.

In conclusion, I believe this Abbey is a place of great beauty and significance, not only for those seeking spirituality because it's nestled in a beautiful location, but also for history and culture enthusiasts, it can be very interesting.

As always, I thank you for the affection you show me under the posts, and I hope that not too far in the future, you can visit this beautiful place. See you soon!

site: https://monaci.org/