In the central square of Lajatico, a building with a tower bears the signs of the ancient 13th-century Palazzo Pretorio, whose prisons can still be recognised. The palazzo was also used as a convent, so much so that the coats of arms of the feudal Corsini family and that of the Camaldolese friars can be seen on the façade.
The Civic Tower
For centuries, the passing of the hours has been marked by the tolling of the bronze bell dating back to 1279, which still stands on top of the Civic Tower supported by a cast-iron castle.
Its elongated shape testifies to its antiquity because it is characteristic of sacred bronzes cast before the 15th century.
The bell bears a Latin inscription on two lines, each preceded by a Byzantine cross. The first line reads AD – MCCLXXVIIII – MENTEM, while the second line reads SCAM – SPONTANEUM – HONOREM – DEO – ET – PATRIE – LIBERATIONEM, i.e.: ‘Anno Domini 1279 mentem sanctam spontaneam ad honorem Dei et Patrie Liberationem’, which in the first part indicates the year the bell was cast, and in the second part the epitaph of St. Agatha, common to many Italian bells from the 13th century onwards.
In the building below, some epigraphs recall two important historical events: that of the sale of the castle of Lajatico to Pietro Gaetani in 1405 and that commemorating its dismantling in 1435.