Valdichiana
Encyclopedia
The Val di Chiana, Valdichiana, or Chiana Valley is an alluvial valley of central Italy
, lying on the territories of the provinces of Arezzo
and Siena
in Tuscany
and the provinces of Perugia
and Terni
in Umbria
.
The Val di Chiana is about 100 km long, and covers about 2300 km². It runs north to south between the plain of Arezzo
and the plain of Orvieto
and includes the watershed
of the Canale Maestro della Chiana, its main watercourse, and the northern part of the watershed of the Chiani River.
To the north-east it is bounded by the Tuscan pre-Apennines crowned by the Alta Sant'Egidio (1,057 m), monte Lignano (837 m) and monte Corneta (744 m). To the south-east, it reaches Lake Trasimeno
and the valley of the Nestore River. To the west, it extends to the Val d'Orcia, where it reaches its highest altitude, 1,148 m (Monte Cetona).
The landscape is mostly hilly, with a plain around the Canale Mastro. Its mean altitude is around 405 m.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, lying on the territories of the provinces of Arezzo
Province of Arezzo
The Province of Arezzo or Arretium is the easternmost province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Arezzo.It has an area of 3,232 km², and a total population of 323,288 in 39 comuni . At June 30, 2005, the main comuni by population are:- External links :...
and Siena
Province of Siena
The Province of Siena is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena.It has an area of 3,821 km² , and a total population of 252,288 . There are 36 comuni in the province...
in Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
and the provinces of Perugia
Province of Perugia
The Province of Perugia is the larger of the two provinces in the Umbria region of Italy, comprising two-thirds of both the area and population of the region. Its capital is the city of Perugia...
and Terni
Province of Terni
The Province of Terni is the smaller of the two provinces in the Umbria region of Italy, comprising one-third of both the area and population of the region. Its capital is the city of Terni...
in Umbria
Umbria
Umbria is a region of modern central Italy. It is one of the smallest Italian regions and the only peninsular region that is landlocked.Its capital is Perugia.Assisi and Norcia are historical towns associated with St. Francis of Assisi, and St...
.
Geography
Arezzo
Arezzo is a city and comune in Central Italy, capital of the province of the same name, located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about 80 km southeast of Florence, at an elevation of 296 m above sea level. In 2011 the population was about 100,000....
and the plain of Orvieto
Orvieto
Orvieto is a city and comune in Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff...
and includes the watershed
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
of the Canale Maestro della Chiana, its main watercourse, and the northern part of the watershed of the Chiani River.
To the north-east it is bounded by the Tuscan pre-Apennines crowned by the Alta Sant'Egidio (1,057 m), monte Lignano (837 m) and monte Corneta (744 m). To the south-east, it reaches Lake Trasimeno
Lake Trasimeno
Lake Trasimeno , also referred to as Trasimene or Thrasimene in English, is the largest lake on the Italian peninsula south of the Po River with a surface area of 128 km2, slightly less than Lake Como...
and the valley of the Nestore River. To the west, it extends to the Val d'Orcia, where it reaches its highest altitude, 1,148 m (Monte Cetona).
The landscape is mostly hilly, with a plain around the Canale Mastro. Its mean altitude is around 405 m.