Volterra AD 1398 is one of the most entertaining and admired Italian re-enactment festivals.
The festival takes place in the pulsing heart of medieval Volterra and in the singular “Parco di Castello” (town’s public garden), overlooked by the imposing Medici’s Fortress.
The town centre is animated by the ever-present past and the visitors are taken, as if by magic, back in time. Fiery steeds, bold knights, noblemen, craftsmen and merchants, peasants and farmers, flag-flyers, crossbowmen and soldiers, jugglers, musicians and jesters bring back to life the mysterious Middle Ages of Volterra. The gist of the festival is the “Feast Day of 1398 AD” that takes place on the third and fourth Sunday of August. On that occasion, from sunrise to sunset, the medieval town of 1398 lives again with shows, events, markets, craftsmen, musicians, jugglers, peasants and noblemen: a unique occasion to dive into the magic atmosphere of the Middle Ages, in one of the finest cities in Tuscany.