Pienza

Pienza is a small town in the valley of the Orcia in southern Tuscany, Italy, in the province of Siena. It is celebrated for its Renaissance urban planning and architecture and is part of the Val d'Orcia UNESCO World Heritage site.

Corsignano, the predecessor village, dates to the medieval period. In 1459 Pope Pius II, born Enea Silvio Piccolomini, purchased and renamed the town Pienza. He commissioned the Florentine architect Bernardo Rossellino to redesign it as an ideal Renaissance city, creating a single, harmonious layout around a central piazza. The project produced the Cathedral (Duomo) with its adjacent Bishop's palace, the Palace of Piccolomini, and the Town Hall, arranged to form a monumental axis that extends along streets toward the countryside. The architecture emphasizes proportion, simple façades, and a human-scaled scale designed for civic and religious life.

Key features include Piazza Pio II, the Duomo, Palazzo Piccolomini, and the civic palazzi; the town remains remarkably cohesive, with relatively few later alterations that would disrupt the Renaissance plan.

UNESCO recognizes Pienza for its exceptional blend of design, urban planning, and landscape within the Val d'Orcia, designated as a World Heritage Site in 1996.

Today Pienza is known for its cheese, Pecorino di Pienza, and for tourism that appreciates its historic center and panoramic views over the Val d'Orcia. The town retains a quiet pace and serves as a gateway to the surrounding countryside, including nearby towns such as Montepulciano and Montalcino.

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