San Biagio Church & Countryside Viewpoint
Standing alone in a cypress-lined meadow just below the town walls, the Tempio di San Biagio is a High Renaissance masterpiece by Antonio da Sangallo the Elder, begun in 1518 and built entirely from honey-coloured travertine. The walk down from Porta di Grassi takes only ten minutes and delivers you into one of the most serene spots in Tuscany.
The Architecture
San Biagio is a Greek-cross plan church topped by a soaring drum dome — Sangallo's most complete work and a building that clearly influenced St Peter's Basilica in Rome. Only one of the two planned flanking towers was ever finished, giving the composition an endearing asymmetry.
Walk slowly around the exterior before entering. The travertine glows amber in afternoon light, and the carved details — shell niches, Doric pilasters, carved cornices — reward close inspection. Inside, the acoustic is extraordinary; even a whisper echoes under the dome.
The View Back Up
From the meadow in front of the church, turn around and look uphill: Montepulciano's medieval skyline rises above terraced vineyards and olive groves in a composition that appears almost impossibly picturesque. This is one of the best angles to photograph the entire town.
In late April and May the surrounding fields are thick with wild poppies and flowering broom, making the foreground of any photograph practically luminous. Sunset from this spot, with the town silhouetted against an orange sky, is genuinely unforgettable.
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