Deposits carried by mineral-rich volcanic hot spring water build up over time on underwater surfaces in the 16th century Bath of St Catherine, a rectangular pool at the centre of the spa village of Bagno Vignoni, Tuscany, Italy. The soothing and healing properties of the steaming water have been enjoyed by Etruscans, Romans, St Catherine of Siena, Medici ruler Lorenzo the Magnificent, Pope Pius II, writer Charles Dickens and the Marquis de Sade.
Bagno Vignoni, Tuscany, Italy: hot volcanic spring water, bubbling up from deep underground at a constant 52 degrees Celsius, has left underwater surfaces in the Bath of St Catherine encrusted with mineral deposits ever since the 49 m x 29 m stone bathing pool or basin was built in in Piazza delle Sorgenti in the 1500s. Archaeologists believe that the Etruscans were among the first to appreciate the therapeutic qualities of the hot springs at Bagno Vignoni, an ancient hilltop spa village above the Val d'Orcia, southeast of Siena. The Romans also bathed here to benefit their health, with the steaming sulphurous water, rich in magnesium and calcium sulphate, able to relax muscles and soothe painful conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis and rheumatism. In late medieval times, Bagno became a popular stopping-place for Christian pilgrims treading the Via Francigena route to Rome. Among them, in the mid-1300s, was St Catherine of Siena. Other visitors to luxuriate in the healing waters included Pope Pius II (1405-64), Florentine statesman Lorenzo (The Magnificent) de' Medici (1449-92), 16th century philosopher Michel de Montaigne and writers Charles Dickens and the Marquis de Sade. More recently, the picturesque village was chosen by acclaimed Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky as the main location for his 1983 film, 'Nostalghia'. Although bathing in the pool is now prohibited, Bagno Vignoni is still a popular tourist destination, with visitors able to bathe at local hotels in water from the same underground source. Its sights also include remains of water mills and the complex network of canals that once powered them in the Parco dei Mulini (Park of the Mills), below the village.
Size: 4288px × 2848px
Location: Bagno Vignoni, Tuscany, Italy.
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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