Pieve di Corsignano
Pieve di Corsignano historical timeline
Last updated on October 14, 2026- 11th century — the cylindrical bell tower is raised, showing Ravenna influence. It is the oldest part of the complex and predates the church now attached to it.
- 12th century — the church is built in Romanesque form, with three naves divided by quadrangular pillars. This is the fabric of most of what stands today.
- a later phase — the arcades of the right-hand side are rebuilt or added; they are visibly of a different campaign from the rest.
- — Enea Silvio Piccolomini is born in Corsignano, and is baptised in this church's font. He becomes Pope Pius II.
- the 15th century — Francesco Todeschini Piccolomini, the future Pope Pius III, is also baptised in the same font. Two popes from one village church.
- from 1459 — Pius II has Corsignano rebuilt as an ideal Renaissance town and renamed Pienza, after himself. The new centre is built up on the hill; this church is left where it is, outside it, which is why it survives as a Romanesque pieve in a Renaissance town's territory.
- at some point — the apses at the terminal end are lost, and the church has stood without them since.
- — a restoration gives the building, and especially its interior, the rustic character it now has.
- — the Historic Centre of the City of Pienza is inscribed by UNESCO. The pieve stands outside that centre, which is part of why it is so much quieter than everything in it.
- 2018–2020 — the pieve houses the Pinchi opus 337 pipe organ, built in 1979, fully mechanical, with nine registers on a single manual.
Verified against Wikipedia, October 2026.