Pieve di Corsignano

Pieve di Corsignano is a Romanesque church from the 11th and 12th centuries, located about a kilometer outside the walls of Pienza. It is historically most significant as the baptismal site of Enea Silvio Piccolomini, the future Pope Pius II, who in the 15th century renamed his birthplace Corsignano as Pienza and transformed it into the first 'ideal city' of the Renaissance. The church features a distinctive cylindrical bell tower, a rare type in Tuscany. The church offers insight into the appearance of the former Corsignano, before Pope Pius II began the transformation of the town into Renaissance Pienza. A short walk downhill from the town center leads to the church.