Any place rich in history, such as Italy and in particular Tuscany, is bound to have its share of ghosts. Here are some of them, with their sightings and legends on the other hand, are we or are we not now in the spooky season?
Martinazza - Italy
Made famous by the poem "Il Malmantile racquistato" by Lorenzo Lippi, Martinazza is a witch with remarkable magical powers, capable of subjugating infernal demons to the point of forcing them to pull her chariot.
The legend speaks of her active participation in the siege of the fortress of Malmantile and her misdeeds: it is said that she appears as a witch with very long hair and that she is constantly dirty; continues undaunted to appear in Malmantile (Lastra a Signa) during the last weeks of May.
The Busdraga
The Busdraga is the peaceless soul of a noblewoman who lived in Camaiore. It is said that she was a woman of remarkable beauty but also of very lascivious customs, married young and soon widowed, she delighted with various illicit loves, attracting the dislikes of many betrayed wives.
In addition, it seemed that the noblewoman, perhaps for a pact with the devil, never grew old, always remaining young and beautiful. One day, however, she was found dead charred: her remains were buried in deconsecrated earth in a forest. For this reason, many claim to have seen her on the slopes of Mount Prana, always intent on wanting to remove an incandescent canvas in which she is held, a canvas that causes her great pain and that makes her groan horribly.
The spectre of the Fosso dell'Abate
Along the Fosso dell'Abate, which divides Viareggio from Lido di Camaiore, you can sometimes see the horrendous specter of an ancient religious who raises his head from the water to sigh disconsolately. It would be the spirit of an abbot who, a few centuries ago, ran a nearby convent and who was unable to abide by his vow of chastity. The remorse for this and the violence carried out against a commoner, led him to commit suicide by drowning himself in the river.
The Abbot, now spirit, is eternally a prisoner of muddy waters .
The Vecchiarina
The Vecchiarina is an ancient megera belonging to the order of the "tempestari", the sorcerers capable of acting on the elements to unleash storms and storms.
She is often remembered in Arezzo. Her appearance is generally that of an unpleasant old woman, but she can also take on very fascinating appearances, such as those of a young woman dancing naked in the middle of the nembi in the company of devils.
Many swear to have seen it towards the end of spring, while climbing up and down from the tower of the ancient Rocca del Cassero in Castiglion Fiorentino.
Image sources: discover san miniato, catalogo generale dei beni culturali, eraldo della toscana, musei castiglion fiorentino
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