The origins of Contignano
The origins of Contignano are very ancient and certainly predate the construction of the Abbey of San Salvatore on Mount Amiata (979). Some scholars believe that a Roman villa, dating back to the 2nd-3rd century, was the first settlement. This villa was located a little lower than where the castle would have been built, of which the keep, the gates and the walls still exist today. Among the first documented acts in the history of Contignano is the sale by Count Ildebrando degli Aldobrandeschi of the lands of Contignano to Foscolo di Pietro, a lord belonging to the local minor nobility, on 29 September 1028. Subsequently, Foscolo’s son and his wife Maiza donated their properties to the Abbey of San Salvatore, including that of Contignano which remained with the monastery for almost three centuries.
But at the beginning of the 14th century the ownership was controversial because the Lords of Farnese, it is not known how and when, became the actual owners of Contignano. In 1339 the castle of Contignano was mentioned for the first time in a document in which Pietro son of the late Ranuccio di Farnese gave the task to two ambassadors to submit the castle, its court and district to the Municipality of Siena. The Farnese remained lords of Contignano until 6 August 1390 when they sold it to Cione di Sandro Salimbeni, a very rich and powerful citizen of Siena.
