Pitigliano, one of the most beautiful villages in Italy met the little Jerusalem

Pitigliano is known as "little Jerusalem". The reason is simple: inside there is a Jewish community who settled around the sixteenth century. The streets of the town, where is the ghetto, hosting some typical restaurants where you can taste the specialities, while in the heart of the village there is a synagogue.

Pitigliano is an ancient town in the province of Grosseto, a valuable place of Maremma which can be visited in one day. Its ancient history and Jewish influences make it the ideal setting to experience the beauty of the traditional Tuscan village, not surprisingly was awarded the accolade "one of the most beautiful villages in Italy".

Pitigliano is considered a small Jerusalem since Jewish culture settled after the expulsion by the Papal States as a result of the Papal Bull of Pius V.

Peaceful coexistence with Christians turned out immediately, which is why even today we find many places frequented by everyone, as the shops or eateries. It was as kosher bakery where you can taste the unleavened bread or the sfratti, the Jewish biscuits of honey and nuts married with a Tuscan culture and become excellence right of Pitigliano. On the edge of the ghetto the Synagogue, the holy place built to remember Rabbi Leone di Sabato in 1598.

Pitigliano overlooking a spur of tufa, hovering over a mountain higher than the surrounding valleys, to be appreciated by the country. Its Etruscan origins are witnessed by the imposing Medici aqueduct, example of hydraulic engineering recognised worldwide, with its 15 arches built in the first half of the 17th century.

Within the walls of the village, right in the historical centre, you may come across the most important point of interest: The Palazzi dei Conti Orsini. Building dating back to the year 1000 and renovated by Antonio da Sangallo the younger and Baldassare Peruzzi then, in which in the fortress, there is the Museum of sacred art, the archaeological museum and library.