To get to know the village of Castel Focognano and the ruins of the ancient castle safeguarded by an ancient watchtower. To discover traditions and tools, linked to the traditional agro-pastoral culture, in a collection put together with the collaboration of local families.

The collection is located in the village of Castel Focognano of which the first historical record dates back to 1028. The castle arose "in the middle of three ravines, on a steep eastern buttress of Pratomagno" and was surrounded by a double enclosure of walls. The Giannellini family owned it until 1322 when it was conquered, after six months of siege, by the bishop of Arezzo, Guido Tarlati. It then passed to the Ubertini family and, from 1404, to the Republic of Florence. The Podestà resided in Castel Focognano until 1778, when the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo ordered the transfer of the administrative headquarters to Rassina.

This small collection, dedicated to traditional material culture, was created around the end of the nineties, thanks to the input of various families in the town, with the aim of preserving the memory of the type of work and artifacts that have characterized the area. It’s organized according to productive cycles and covers various themes:

• The cycle of wheat and wood cutting;
• Pastoralism and transhumance with exhibits of tools related to the processing of milk, shearing and movement of the flocks;
• The processing of wool showing the instruments once used at home in the various phases of the wool cycle. From carding to spinning to warping and weaving, the manufacturing process can be traced from fleece to fabric.

From the tower the visit continues in the village to discover ancient sites including the Loggia del Podestà, dating back to the 15th century, with its numerous coats of arms carved in stone,  and the ancient bread oven used in the past by the inhabitants of Castel Focognano.