Lunigiana

The Lunigiana is one of Italy's most extraordinary hidden regions — a valley of castles between Tuscany and Liguria, through which the ancient Via Francigena pilgrim route passed on its way from Canterbury to Rome. More castles survive here per square kilometre than almost anywhere in Italy — over 150 medieval fortresses and towers still stand in the Lunigiana valleys. The capital, Pontremoli, is a fascinating town straddling the Magra river with an extraordinary Museum of the Stele Staturie — ancient stone statues, 11,000 years old, carved by a Neolithic and Bronze Age civilisation unique to this area. The stele, depicting male and female figures with schematic faces and weapons, are among the most haunting ancient monuments in Italy and almost completely unknown to international visitors. Fosdinovo's Malaspina castle (where Dante stayed in 1306) can be visited. The Pontremolese focaccia — cooked on terracotta plates in the same manner as testaroli — is the essential local food.