The Crete Senesi refers to an area of the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

region of

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

immediately to the south of

Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...

. It consists of a range of hills and woods among villages and includes the ''

comuni A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' of

Asciano Asciano () is a ''comune'' and hill town in the province of Siena in the Italy, Italian region Tuscany. It is located at the centre of the Crete senesi between the river Ombrone and the torrent Copra, some southeast of the town of Siena by rail. ...

Buonconvento Buonconvento is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about south of Florence and about southeast of Siena in the area known as the Crete Senesi. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("T ...

Monteroni d'Arbia Monteroni d'Arbia is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about south of Florence and about southeast of Siena in the area known as the Crete Senesi. It takes its names from the Arbia torren ...

Rapolano Terme Rapolano Terme is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about east of Siena in the area known as the Crete Senesi The Crete Senesi refers to an area of the I ...

and

San Giovanni d'Asso San Giovanni d’Asso is a frazione of the ''comune'' of Montalcino, province of Siena, Italy. It is located about southeast of Florence and about southeast of Siena in the area known as the Crete Senesi. It was a ''comune'' until 2017. The ham ...

, all within the

province of Siena The province of Siena (, ) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena. It has 259,826 inhabitants. Geography The province is divided into seven historical areas: * Alta Val d'Elsa * Chian ...

. They border to the north with the Chianti Senese area, to the east with

Val di Chiana The Val di Chiana, Valdichiana, or Chiana Valley, formerly Clanis Valley, is a tectonic valley of central Italy, whose valley floor consists of important alluvial residues filled up since the 11th century, lying on the territories of the provinc ...

and to the south-west with

Val d'Orcia The Val d'Orcia or Valdorcia () is a region of Tuscany, central Italy, which extends from the hills south of Siena to Monte Amiata. Its gentle, cultivated hills are occasionally broken by gullies and by towns and villages such as Pienza (rebu ...

. Nearby is also the semi-arid area known as the

Accona Desert The Accona Desert refers to a hilly area in the Siena province of Italy, within the municipality of Asciano 3°14'4.30"N; 11°33'37.48"E The term is often used to include the Biancana site of Le Fiorentine - Leonina 43°17'32.95”N; 11°26'54.0 ...

. ''Crete Senesi'' are literally the "

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

s of

": the distinctive grey colouration of the soil gives the landscape an appearance often described as lunar. This characteristic clay, known as ''mattaione'', represents the sediments of the

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58Badlands Badlands are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded."Badlands" in '' Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 47. They are characterized by steep slopes, ...

and are typical conformations of the land. Crete Senesi Monte Oliveto

Perhaps the most notable edifice of this area is the Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore, located 10 km south of

. The region is known for its production of

white truffles ''Tuber magnatum'', the white truffle (Italian: ), is a species of truffle in the order Pezizales and family Tuberaceae. It is found in southern Europe, the Balkans and Thailand. Description Fruiting in autumn, they can reach diameter and , t ...

, and hosts a festival and a museum dedicated to the rare fungus (genus Tuber).

Gallery

File:In Val d'Orcia.jpg, Cereal crops are cultivated with the aid of irrigation File:Crete senesi presso asciano, 09.JPG, Crete Senesi in

area File:Cretesenesi panorama.jpg, Panorama with ''fontoni'' File:Crete Senesi Calanchi.jpg, Badlands of

Accona desert The Accona Desert refers to a hilly area in the Siena province of Italy, within the municipality of Asciano 3°14'4.30"N; 11°33'37.48"E The term is often used to include the Biancana site of Le Fiorentine - Leonina 43°17'32.95”N; 11°26'54.0 ...

File:Crete Senesi Sunset - Saltafabbro, Asciano, Siena, Italy - July 4, 2010 01.jpg, Sunset in Saltafabbro, Asciano

References

External links

Official websiteTerre di Siena: Crete SenesiVideos of the Crete Senesi
Geography of Tuscany Province of Siena {{Siena-geo-stub