tirreno_adriatico_2015

dimostra la tipica pianta a scacchiera, il borgo di Cascina è stato molto importante in epoca
medievale, grazie alla propria posizione strategica, lungo la via di collegamento tra Pisa e Firenze.
Questo ne ha determinato da un lato la ricchezza, dall’altro la distruzione a più riprese. Nonostante questo,
il centro storico conserva comunque molti edifici storici ed è pertanto molto interessante
per le architetture religiose (Pieve di Santa Maria e di San Giovanni e Santa Maria Assunta, esempi
di Romanico pisano; il trecentesco Oratorio di San Giovanni Battista), militari (la cinta muraria e la torre
dell’orologio) e civili (le ville e i palazzi del centro ma anche delle tante frazioni del comune).
Cascina is world-renowned not only for being the scene of a battle between the armies of Pisa and Florence away back
in 1364, depicted by Michelangelo and Vasari, but also for the woodworking skills of its carpenters. Back in Renaissance
times, the village was teeming with workshops. In the last century, the city dwellers turned into successful furniture
makers and, more recently, specialized in interior furnishings for yachts and ships.
Tradition also plays a major role in local cuisine, which offers delicacies such as Tuscan croutons, stews, wild game,
and fish as well; tasty dishes to be paired with an equally delicious wine – one would be spoilt for choice (Bianco
Pisano di San Torpè, Chianti, Montescudaio, and Vin Santo).
Cascina is a village of Roman origin, as its grid plan reveals. It played a major role in the Middle Ages, being strategically
positioned along the road linking Florence and Pisa.
On the one hand, this was the reason of the town’s richness, but it also caused the village to be ravaged multiple times.
Nevertheless, many historic buildings survived to the present day, making the old town very fascinating for its religious
(Pieve di San Giovanni e Santa Maria Assunta, an example of Pisan Romanesque art; the Oratorio di San Giovanni
Battista, dating back to the 14th century), military (the city walls and the clock tower), and civil buildings (the villas and
palaces in the city centre and in the surrounding hamlets).
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