Integrated Digital Survey Methodologies for Late Medieval Fortifications in Tuscany: The Fortress of Malmantile

Abstract

Abstract. The “castle of Malmantile”, on the hills of Lastra a Signa, was built with the intention of strengthening the Florentine defenses against the rival city of Pisa. It represents one of the most interesting examples of late medieval fortification that has best preserved the entirety of the walls. It was originally built as a military outpost along the ancient road that connected Florence to Pisa. Following the downgrading of the military defense role, it became an inhabited center, a reference point for the surrounding fertile countryside. The data acquisition was carried out in three different survey campaigns, the first two carried out between 2009 and 2010 and the last, completed and updated, carried out in July 2018. The restitution work was carried out to give a complete representation of the place, its constructive characteristics and its state of conservation / decay. Exhaustive thematic maps have been extracted from the obtained documents, which have provided an adequate account of the conditions of the places.