Our Story

The story of the Agriturismo di Charme Metelliano begins in 1997 when Vera and Giuseppe bought the property, fascinated by its character and charm.

The facade of the villa is unique of its kind in the Cortona area: it was embellished in the nineteenth century with frescoes inspired by the Maison à colombages, presumably during the era of French troops in the area.

The Art Masters of Verona, Gabrio and Luisa, did a fantastic job in refreshing the facade and in creating ad hoc decorations for the interior spaces of the villa. Inspiration, for them, is hybrid. Modern and ancient are not antithetical if you look at reality with your senses available to receive the message. You can create a pleasant form using a few strokes or minimal interventions in an intelligent way, without forgetting the magnificence of the historical originals, authentic "mines" for those who have curiosity in their eyes..

The facade of the villa is unique of its kind in the Cortona area: it was embellished in the nineteenth century with frescoes inspired by the Maison à colombages, presumably during the era of the French troops in the area.

The art masters of Verona, Gabrio and Luisa, have worked very well in refreshing the façade and in creating ad hoc decorations for the interior spaces of the villa. Inspiration, for them, is hybrid. Modern and ancient are not antithetical if you look at reality with senses available to receive the message, you can create a pleasant form using a few strokes or minimal interventions in an intelligent way, without forgetting the magnificence of the historical originals, authentic "mines" for those who want learning about know-how and beauty.

The history of Metelliano instead has much more ancient roots as this pleasant land was the scene of a bitter battle of the Second Punic War.

On June 21st 217 BC the Battle of Trasimeno was fought, during the II Punic War, which saw the Carthaginians commanded by Hannibal, face the Roman army led by consul Gaius Flaminio Nepote: it was a battle for the hegemony over the Mediterranean Sea. A battle that ended with the total and definitive victory of Rome.

The most ancient historical sources of the battle of Trasimeno date back to Livy and Polybius and over the centuries various theories have tried to identify the passages and actual battlefields of this historical clash.

The Carthaginian commander, persuaded by Nepote's troops, had identified a valley between the slopes of the mountains of Cortona and Lake Trasimeno where he ambushed the Romans forcing them to pursue him to prevent him from reaching Rome (Hannibal ad portas). In this place, which is considered close to the territory on which our Agriturismo di Charme stands, formerly owned by the Gens Metellia, was held the famous battle that saw the death of the consul himself, be the hand of a Gaul knight named Ducarius.

One of the in-depth and most detailed hypothesis by the scholars identifies these places in the Val di Chiana, near Cortona, along the corse of the Esse stream. In detail, above the nearly church of Montanare, there is a sloping floor with the evocative toponym of "Campo Romano" that can be the actual place where the battle was fought.

In short, Metelliano area is located along the route of an important road artery that was built by the Romans.

Thematic walking and trekking routes have been created that retrace the paths of the battle of Trasimeno (the Hannibal's Path 14km) or the ancient paved path from the Roman Era that connects Torreone to Mount Egidio, called "Strada Basolata".

Enrich your stay

We would be happy to recommend the best routes and walks to help you discover the authentic soul of our area.

Our Rooms

Agriturismo di Charme Metelliano is an oasis of peace in the heart of the Cortona countryside.

We offer only five exclusive rooms, all uniquely hand painted and with their unique atmosphere.
We include in our price breakfast, parking, wifi and taxes.