Anghiari

Florence defeated Milan on the plain below in 1440, and the city later commissioned Leonardo to paint the battle on a wall of the Palazzo Vecchio; he experimented with a wax-based technique that failed, abandoned the work, and it was later covered by Vasari's fresco, so the Battle of Anghiari survives only in copies, including one by Rubens after a lost drawing. Whether fragments remain behind Vasari's wall has been investigated and disputed. The village itself is intact within its walls, with a steep main street, a museum of local crafts, and a long tradition of handloom weaving still practised in one workshop.

What you actually see

• The walled village - an intact medieval circuit above the plain.
• The battle site - the plain below, and the story of Leonardo's lost painting.
• The weaving workshop - handloom linen still produced in the village.
• The Palazzo Taglieschi - a museum of local art and craft.

When to go

April to October; the Palio della Vittoria foot race is run on 29 June, marking the battle. Summer weekends bring day trippers. Winter is quiet.

Honest expectations

The battle is commemorated, not visible; there is nothing to see on the plain. The village is small with steep streets. Museums keep short hours.

Nearby

Sansepolcro lies north; Arezzo is west.