XII Century Fully Furnished Castle In Chianti, With Pool And Olive Grove Montebenichi (Ar)

XII century fully furnished Castle in Chianti, with park, pool and olive grove - Montebenichi (AR)

The Castelletto and the village of Montebenichi

The Castelletto of Montebenichi dates back to the 12th century. Originally it was the core of the original fortress, over the centuries transformed into a village after losing its defensive function. The structure owes its current forms to the restoration begun in 1901 by the painter Macchiaiolo Salvadore Malesci; a subsequent restoration and the destination of luxury accommodation were operated in 1997 by the current owner.

Montebenichi is a tiny village, located on a Chianti hill at 525 m. above sea level, halfway between Siena and Arezzo.

Architecture and landscape

A perfect example of Neo-Gothic or Neo Medieval architecture, an artistic movement born in Europe in the 18th century, which developed in European countries in the 19th and early 20th centuries, as witnessed by this renovation. The interior has been renovated and furnished with works of art in the latest restoration, perfectly following this spirit.

The landscape is classic rural Tuscan, that typical of Chianti, rich in woods, olive groves, vineyards and prestigious villas.

Procofev and Ėjzenštejn to celebrate the Tuscan Neo-Gothic

We wanted to insert by Sergei Procofev ”The Battle of the Ice”, from the 1938 opera Alexander Nevsky, score composed for the homonymous film by Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein, to celebrate this architecture, which is without a doubt an icon of the Italian Neo-Gothic also inserted in Chianti. To celebrate the time and the connection with the film, we made use of black and white, all in the hope of being able to convey the emotion that we felt visiting ”the Castelletto”.

Property description

The Castelletto overlooks the square in the center of Montebenichi, which was the parade ground of the ancient fortress.

At the entrance an atrium with on the left the office and the entrance to a rear room. On the right you enter a living room which leads to the dining room and the kitchen. From the kitchen you can also reach the large back room home to many services (pantry, laundry, ironing, cupboards for linen and dishes, etc.) From here a staircase leads to the cellar. This room has a door that opens onto the other side of the building.

The kitchen opens onto a courtyard that allows you to reach a garge and a warehouse with exit to the square.

From the entrance hall, a staircase leads to the first floor to an atrium that overlooks a large loggia overlooking the square, the Chianti hills and a small garden. In the atrium there are the doors to the red room, the old library, the green room and the new library: rooms that house the collections (paintings, drawings, furniture, majolica, sculptures) of the owner.

Two stairs lead to six bedrooms (five on the second floor and one on the first floor) all with bathroom. From the second floor a wooden staircase reaches the terrace with a 360-degree view of the Chianti, Siena, Crete, Val d’Orcia even.

In the Castelletto there are also three small apartments (each of about 45 sqm) with independent entrances. Another apartment is located in the square.

With a few steps you can reach a large garden with beautiful views of the Valdambra, where there is a swimming pool; rooms attached to this, a gym and parking.

On the slope of the hill there is an olive grove with about 160 olive trees. The extension of the land is about 2 hectares.
Cadastral maps on request.

Infrastructure and services

Village: Bucine, about 12 km
City: Arezzo:37 km, Siena 38 km, Florence 67 km,
Nearest hospital: Montevarchi (SI) 25km, San Donato (SI) 35km

Photos, videos and audio-visual complete the description.

Energy certificate
Building of class: D
IPE: 379,43.

Cadastral category: D/2, Cadastral income: 8868,00.