The Origins

Buriano is a medieval town that arose around the 10th century as a fief of the Aldobrandeschi, who subsequently ceded it to the local Lambardi family; the latter controlled the place until the first half of the fourteenth century.

In 1332 Buriano passed under the hegemony of Siena but, a few years later, it was ceded to the Pisans; in 1398 Buriano was conquered by the Appiani di Piombino who incorporated it into their principality.

Since then, the town remained uninterrupted in the Principality until 1815 when it was definitively annexed to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and, since then, its fate has followed.

Most of the buildings enclosed in the historic core of Buriano date back to the Renaissance period, with the exception of the fortress and the medieval parish church. In the town you can admire some monuments including the church of Santa Maria Assunta in Arcione which was built in 1302 although there are documents dating back to 1051 of a church dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta in Arcione.

The church of Santa Maria Assunta is built in the Romanesque house style (single nave) with a central "eye" typical of the Augustinian churches of this era and of the area. It was the church of the Guglielmiti and later of the Augustinians. Inside there are beautiful paintings also depicting San Guglielmo and you can see the Baroque stuccos by the Swiss (from Lugano) Andrea Ferrari or his pupils. But the most important things according to the writer are the wooden statue of San Guglielmo in Augustinian dress, the tomb of the Blessed Libertesca.

The reliquaries with the blood of the Blessed Libertesca and the silver one (1746) with the arm of San Guglielmo are also very precious. The hermitage of San Guglielmo is immersed in the greenery of the nearby Mediterranean scrub. The small church of the Romitorio is a destination for pilgrimages and the arrival point of the solemn procession that takes place on the second Sunday after Easter. The small church of rustic forms, inserted in an agricultural complex, was built in 1597 by Blessed Giovanni da Batignano and subsequently in 1758 on the initiative of the Alberti counts was fully restored; it has also recently undergone a further restoration.

Why the name: Mossa dei Barbari

Its name derives from an ancient race of knights that was disputed on the road that leads from today's Locanda to the ancient military castle.

The "move" in the Tuscan dialect means a brusque and sudden movement, as is the click of the horse at the start, in fact those who are at the start of ancient races such as the Palio of Siena are called "Mossiere".

The horses participating in the competition were of the "Berber" breed, from which the name "barbarians" later derived. The competition was held once a year, on the second Sunday after Easter for the feast of the patron saint St. William. The Baldoni family, originally from Buriano for generations and attentive to local history, therefore decided to give the name, "Mossa dei Barbari ", to their own business.

The Locanda inaugurated in June 2004 and constantly improved over time, is located in a medieval context on the top of the hill of the town of Buriano from which it is possible to admire an enviable panorama of the Maremma plain and its hills, an ideal environment for those seeking maximum relaxation inside a structure a few kilometers from the well-known tourist center of Castiglione della Pescaia.