Pistoia
From Freepedia
Image:Pistoia.jpg Pistoia (ancient Pistoria) is a city in the Tuscany region of Italy, the capital of a province of the same name, located about 30 km (18 mi) west and north of Florence.
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History
Pistorium was centre of Gallic, Ligurian and Etruscan settlemente before becoming a Roman colony in the 6th century BC, along the important road Via Cassia: in 62 BC the demagogue Catiline and his fellow conspirators were slain nearby. From the 5th century the city was a bishopric, and during the Lombardic kingdom it was a royal city and had several privileges. Pistoia's most splendid age began in 1177 when it proclamated itself as a free commune: in the following years it became an important political centre, erecting walls and several public and religious buildings.
In 1254 the Ghibelline Pistoia was taken over by Guelph Florence, but supposedly resulted in the division of the Guelphs into "Black" and "White" factions. Pistoia remained a Florentine holding except for a brief period in the 14th century, when Castruccio Castracani captured it for Lucca, and was officially annexed to Florence in 1530.
In 1786 a famous Jansenist episcopal synod was convened in Pistoia.
Landmarks
Pistoia always had a bad reputation; Dante mentioned Pistoia as the home town of Vanni Fucci, who is encountered in Inferno tangled up in a knot of snakes while cursing God, and Michelangelo called the Pistoiese the "enemies of heaven".
Pistoia lent its name to the pistol, which it started manufacturing in the 16th century. But today it is also notable for the extensive garden nurseries spreading around it.
Although it's not as visited as other towns in Tuscany, and the industrial environs discourage, Pistoia presents a well-preserved and charming medieval city inside the old walls. The large Piazza del Duomo is lined with attractive original buildings as the Palazzo del Comune and the Palazzo del Podestà: it is the setting (in July) of the Giostra dell'Orso ("Bear Joust"), when the best horsemen of the districts of the town tilt with lances at a target held up by a dummy shaped like a bear.
The original Cathedral of San Zeno (5th century) burned down in 1108, but was rebuilt during the following century, and received incremental improvements until the 17th century. Its outstanding feature is the Altar of St James, an exemplar of the silversmith's craft begun in 1287 but not finished until the 15th century. Its various sections contain 628 figures, the total weighing nearly a ton.
Other relevant buildings are:
- church of the Madonna dell'Umiltà (1509), finished by Giovanni Vasari
- church of San Barotlomeo in Pantano (12th century)
- church of San Giovanni Fuoricivitas (12th-14th century)
- church of San Domenico
- church of Santa Maria delle Grazie
- church of San Pietro Maggiore
- Ospedale del Ceppo (13th century)
Notable people born in Pistoia
 Piazza del Duomo |
 Piazza del Duomo |
 Piazza del Duomo |
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