History | Follonica | Terre degli Uffizi

Follonica’s historical heart coincides with the old circuit of walls built to enclose its iron foundry district. The municipality celebrated its first centenary last year, in 2023, having separated from the neighbouring municipality of Massa Marittima to become an independent comune in 1923.

 The town earned a reputation for the quality of its steel while also becoming an important industrial centre for the manufacture and artistic crafting of cast iron artefacts during the reign of Grand Duke Leopoldo II of Lorraine. Thanks to this strong bond with its past, the town is now rediscovering its history and its built heritage, restoring and updating that heritage to offer a modern vision of the ‘cast-iron capital’, its splendour and its place in European history.   

 A major renovation scheme is gradually breathing new life into the city’s industrial buildings and grand ducal iron foundries. The entire Ilva area, currently the focus of an important restoration project, now houses the MAGMA, the Museo delle Arti in Ghisa nella Maremma, the Biblioteca Ghisa and the Teatro Fonderia Leopolda Theatre in addition to being a gateway to the Parco Tecnologico Archeologico delle Colline Metallifere Grossetane.