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Sassofortino is a lovely village circa 35 km north of Grosseto, nearby the panoramic Monte Sassoforte. In the village there are several shops, a couple of pizzeria/restaurants, a tennis court and many walking paths. It´s worth visiting the ruins of the old castle in Sassoforte.
Sassofortino was founded by the survivors of the destruction of Rocca di Sassoforte by the Sienese in 1330. Inside the hamlet there are several remarkable doorways sculptured in rhyolite, with interesting decorations and figurative motifs. Sassoforte castle which was first cited in 1076 belonged to the Counts Aldobrandeschi, who sold it to the city of Siena for 5500 gold florins; the latter, fearing the strong position of the stronghold, ordered the town walls and the dungeons to be destroyed. The remains of the fortification occupy the entire circumference of the rhyolitic platform at the summit of Sassoforte, and bear witness to the noteworthy dimension and high quality of the structure of the battlements. There are numerous archaelogical sites to be visited in the area, for example at Roselle, Populonia and Vetulonia, and at Lago dell’Accesa (“Accesa Lake”) there is a recently established Etruscan Archaeological Park, with remains of tombs from the 9th century onwards, and of 6th century dwellings. The Cistercian Abbey at San Galgano and the adjacent chapel of Montesiepi with the sword in the rock are about one hour’s travel from Massa Marittima. The Art cities of Siena, Volterra and San Gimignano are only a half-day excursion away.
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