San Vivaldo Monastery, Montaione, Renaissance convent and calvary in Montaione, Italy.
San Vivaldo Monastery is a Franciscan complex set on a wooded hill near Montaione in Tuscany, built in a Renaissance style. It consists of a church, a convent, and a series of chapels scattered through the surrounding woodland, each housing painted terracotta figures arranged in scenes from the life and Passion of Christ.
The site traces back to around 1320, when a Franciscan tertiary named Vivaldo lived as a hermit in a hollow tree on this hill and died there. In the early 16th century, Franciscan friars built the series of chapels to recreate the holy sites of Jerusalem for pilgrims who could not make the journey.
Each chapel is named after a place in Jerusalem, so visitors move from Gethsemane to Golgotha as they walk through the woods. This path through the trees still draws people who come to follow the route on foot as a form of prayer or reflection.
The complex sits in woodland outside the village and is reached on foot from a small parking area nearby. Checking opening conditions in advance is advisable, as access to the chapels is not always available without a guided visit.
The terracotta figures inside the chapels were made in the early 16th century by craftsmen linked to the workshop of Giovanni della Robbia, and several groups survive in close to their original condition. This makes the site one of the most complete collections of painted Renaissance sculpture still visible in a single outdoor setting in Tuscany.
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