Popiglio

The history of Popiglio is crystallized in what is the most famous and important monument not only of the village but of the whole mountain: just a single look at it is enough to fall in love with this place.
Outside the center of the village, you arrive on a small promontory overlooking the river Lima. To reach it you need to pass along a road, surrounded by trees and made of curves and ups and downs, which has become one of the most exciting tests of the Rally degli Abeti thanks to its conformation. Once you get there, leave your car as far away as possible and enjoy every step that brings you nearer to your destination, placed just a few hundred meters away and ready to welcome you – it will be worth it. Your travel took you to Rocca Securana, or, as everyone calls it with a pinch of poorly concealed pride, Le Torri di Popiglio.
The Rocca stood on an ancient Roman settlement guarding the roads, it was later reinforced by the Lombards and then it was made safer by the Counts Guidi, the feudal lords of the area. The Rocca consisted of two square-based towers which you can still see, even if partially collapsed, and of other buildings, of which you can only see the remains. The Rocca was the most important sentinel to protect our territory until a few centuries ago.
The Torri share and contain the past of the village of Popiglio. It was born during the Roman age, probably developing around this settlement, and then it became more important during the war between Pistoia and Lucca, when it was already a free commune with several inhabitants. During those years it was attacked and invaded several times, but one episode is of particular importance. The worst traitor of Pistoia, Filippo Tedici, escaped seeking shelter in this place. Tedici was the one who opened the city of Pistoia for Castruccio Castracani, allowing him to control it. Anyway, he was found, captured and decapitated on the Castruccio’s Bridge. His head was taken to Pistoia in triumph but the Popiglio’s inhabitants collected his body, buried it, and then returned it to the family. In the center of the village there is the Pieve di Santa Maria Assunta, one of the most ancient churches of the mountain. It was inaugurated in 1271 and, even if during its life it has undergone numerous modernizations, it has never lost its late Romanesque style. Its stone exterior, sober and austere, is like a casket that protects priceless treasures. Once the threshold is crossed, the church reveals all its beauty and its warm welcome. In 1993, the Museo Diocesano di Arte Sacra was inaugurated to keep the treasures safe and to allow people to enjoy the church. Today, it preserves and enhances the historical and artistic heritage of the territory. In the museum path, in addition to the church, you can also visit the Chapel of the Company of SS. Sacramento. This is a small building, built in 1638, overlooking the town square and housing numerous vestments and paintings of 1600 and 1700.
Nonetheless, Popiglio is not only this. Since 1890 it has been hosting the Mascagni Theatre. Created on the initiative of the inhabitants of the town and used for years as the seat of the philharmonic dedicated to Pietro Mascagni, today it is the theatre of the Pistoia mountain. In 1910 it had already hosted the village’s Filodrammatica, starting its theatrical tradition. Today, it hosts numerous performances, comedies, and concerts, framed in the original proscenium arch of the end of 1800.