Anghiari is one of 184 Italian small towns awarded with the "Bandiera Arancione" (Orange Flag) for excellency in tourism, hospitality and the environment. The beauty of this small town in the province of Arezzo made it also one of the "Borghi più belli d'Italia" (Most beautiful villages in Italy). But Anghiari is famous not just for this, but also because it was the location of a famous battle that took place in 1440 between Florence and Milan and won by Florentines (the Battle of Anghiari).
The Battle of Anghiari was fought on June, 29th 1440 in the course of the Wars in Lombardy and ended with a victory for the Republic of Florence’s army.
Such a battle inspired Leonardo da Vinci, who painted a large fresco for the Palazzo della Signoria (Palazzo Vecchio - Old Palace), but unfortunately it was lost. The legend tells that Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo challenge each other in painting each one a part of the Salone dei ‘500 (Hall of Five Hundred).
However, Michelangelo didn’t stay in Florence long enough to complete the project because he received the commission to paint the Sistine Chapel in Rome with frescoes. And what about Leonardo’s fresco? There are two different versions of the story: someone claims that Leonardo tried a new technique using the heat of some braziers to dry the fresco’s colors more quickly, but the heat melted the wool work; the other version tells that Leonard’s fresco is still on the wall under Vasari’s frescoes - who later painted both the walls of the Hall of Five Hundred – but it seems that, with the help of a careful analysis and several samples, this hypothesis was discarded.
By the way, the fresco was certainly painted, as proved by some drawings by Rubens, nowadays on display at the Louvre Museum. Further proofs of the genius’ work are just in the town of Vinci, at the Museum of the Battle of Anghiari, where it is possible to admire some sketches of Leonardo’s fresco.
EVENTS IN ANGHIARI
In July, visitors will find the Anghiari Festival and will have the chance to enjoy several concerts of classical music, opera and chamber music. The official orchestra is the Southbank Sinfonia of London, conducted by Simon Over.
A more recent tradition is the evening called “Tovaglia a Quadri” (in Italian, “Checked Tablecloth”), an event dedicated to poor-theatre performances and kitchen, recognized by the Region of Tuscany. Such an original event takes place during a dinner with tables covered with checked tablecloths of the ancient local weaving factory (Busatti), where the actors (citizens of the town) tell stories linked to the community of Anghiari.
