Parco Mediceo di Pratolino (Villa Demidoff)
A 20-minute drive north of Settignano, the Parco Mediceo di Pratolino — now called Villa Demidoff — is one of the great forgotten Medici landscapes: 20 hectares of English-style parkland hiding the colossal Apennino statue by Giambologna, a moss-covered giant crouching over a pond that is as surreal and spectacular as anything in Tuscany.
The Apennino Statue
Giambologna's Apennino, completed around 1580, stands nearly 11 metres tall and is carved directly from a rocky outcrop, making it simultaneously a sculpture and a grotto. You can walk inside the figure through a series of damp, frescoed chambers — a completely unexpected experience in the middle of a public park.
The statue is at its most atmospheric in autumn when the surrounding oaks turn rust-red and a low mist sits over the pond, but the park rewards visits in every season.
The Park Itself
Beyond the Apennino the park opens into meadows, a small lake with rowing ducks, and a network of gravel paths shaded by ancient plane trees and cedars of Lebanon. Families from Florence use it as a Sunday picnic ground, and the atmosphere is relaxed and local.
From Settignano, combine the visit with a drive along the scenic Via Bolognese, stopping at the roadside Trattoria La Maremma for a plate of pappardelle al cinghiale before entering the park.
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