Fauglia | Poggio alla Farnia, former Pirandello Study Centre

North of Fauglia is Poggio alla Farnia, characterised by the presence of several residential villas and farms, thanks to its favourable panoramic position on the Pisan Hills.

Notable among the villas is Villa Trovarsi, formerly Villa Filicchi. The property belonged to the wealthy Conti family, who had acquired many lands and villas in Fauglia, while part of Poggio alla Farnia passed to the noble Cesira Conti Filicchi. Attached to the villas of ‘Poggio alla Farnia’ were 12 farms where wine and oil were produced. At that time, the villa was open to the most important families in the area. The property remained in the Filicchi family until 1963, when it was sold to Marta Abba, a famous actress and Pirandello’s muse.

The actress transformed the villa into the Centro Studi Pirandelliano (the name Trovarsi comes from one of his plays), collecting memorabilia, writings and documents on Pirandello’s activities, and also had a small theatre built in the villa’s garden for retrospectives and plays. The villa cannot be visited.

Nearby is the hamlet of Poggio Pallone, inhabited in ancient times under the name of Apuniana, as it appears in several documents from the 8th century. The built-up area is made up of a considerable number of old farmhouses with interesting architecture. A monastery dedicated to St Michael existed here, of which, however, traces were lost after 748.