Within the Tuscan territory, the Carmignano area still preserves the most ancient Etruscan remains. The Montalbano area, with its fertile zones and the excellent geographical position, was a focal point for the communication paths that from the plain between Florence and Pistoia allowed to reach the ports of the Tyrrhenian Sea. The finds of the Superintendence for the Archaeological Heritage of Tuscany in the 1960s demonstrate the extraordinary cultural and economic development of the Etruscan town of Artimino and of its territory. To collect the finds that the whole area has returned, the Etruscan Archaeological Museum "Francesco Nicosia" was opened, an ideal starting point for visiting the Archaeological Park of Carmignano (www.parcoarcheologicocarmignano.it) surrounded by nature and immersed in one of the most beautiful landscapes in the region.
The visit to the Park allows you to appreciate the important monuments that have returned the remains exhibited in the Museum, including the Montefortini Tumulus and the Boschetti Tumulus in Comeana, the five tombs of the Prato Rosello Necropolis in Artimino and the fortified settlement of Pietramarina that can be reached following the road from Carmignano to Vinci.
In relatively recent times, as a result of the construction of the Interporto (distribution hub) of Central Tuscany, a large area of ​​Etruscan origin - the city of Gonfienti - was found in Prato, located in a strategic point for commercial connections of those times and strongly projected towards the trans-Appenine direction that finds its natural urbanistic and architectural comparison with the town of Marzabotto, beyond the Apennines, on the internal road which connected the northern Etruria with Bologna and the North.