Discover Chianti

The name Decimo is of Roman origin, meaning a place ten miles away, in this case from Florence. The Parish Church of Santa Cecilia a Decimo is first mentioned in 1043, but was founded earlier. Under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Florence it gained importance thanks to its wealth and the privileges granted by the Emperors, which exempted the population of Decimo from taxes from the 10th century onward. In the 13th century there was a castle attached to the church from which the Podestà, nominated by the Bishop, but also subjected to the Commune, exercised his magisterial power. In 1355 it became the chief village of the League of Decimo, but its expansion was limited by the growth of San Casciano. The church’s plan, with three naves separated by square pillars, is typical of Romanesque parish churches in Chianti. The central nave once ended in a semicircular apse, but was later transformed into a square apse. The facade is preceded by a 16th century style portico and is decorated, above, by the coat-of-arrns of the church’s patrons, the Rucellai. Behind the church rises the sturdy square Romanesque bell-tower. The interior of the church is decorated with the Baroque stucco commissioned by the parish priest Borghigiani in 1728. 0n the first altar on the right is a fresco depicting a Madonna and Child, perhaps the work of Cenni di Francesco, a late Gothic artist, active in the area between the late 14th and early 15th centuries. On the High Altar is a Madonna and Child with Saints Lawrence and Cecilia, a beautiful 16th century panel attributed to Michele di Ridolfo Ghirlandaio.

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