Sasso di Simone
The Sasso di Simone is a massive block of calcareous rock that rises like a regular parallelepiped from the mountains of the, reaching an altitude of a.s.l. and dominating the Montefeltro region. Today, it falls within the Sasso di Simone Nature Reserve between the Province of Arezzo and the Province of Pesaro and Urbino.
History
Formed from Tertiary marine sediments, deposited in the northern Tyrrhenian Sea, it is a fragment of the Apennine rocky folds that, emerging from the sea and shifting from west to east, gradually fragmented and are now found in outcrops along the entire Apennine chain, from the Casentino to Monte Fumaiolo and up to the Adriatic Sea, ending to the north with the cliff of Monte Titano in San Marino.Città del Sole
Sasso di Simone was chosen by Cosimo I in 1565 as part of a political plan to defend and strengthen the state of Florence to build a city-fortress that would be called Città del Sole, a toponym similar to that of Terra del Sole, the other Medici city-fortress built in the Romagnolo territory. Indeed, Sasso di Simone represented a strategic node of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in opposition to the castle of San Leo in Montefeltro. Designed by architects Giovanni Camerini and Simone Genga, it was used for nearly a century in its dual role as both a military and civilian city; however, due to adverse natural conditions and changing political circumstances, its construction was not completed, and the city was definitively abandoned by the end of the 17th century.Protected natural areas
Together with Monte Simoncello, it forms the Parco naturale regionale del Sasso Simone e Simoncello and is part of two SICs: Sasso Simone e Simoncello and Monti Sasso Simone e Simoncello, respectively covering 1665 ha and 1190 ha.The Sasso di Simone is also protected by another natural protected area, the Sasso di Simone Nature Reserve, a provincial reserve entirely within the Province of Arezzo, in Tuscany. The reserve was established in 1996 and covers an area of 1,604 ha.