of a not-too-remote heathendom, which like so many woodland churches, may have been built on the very spot set apart for sacred and solemn rites in honour of some ancient pagan god of the soil.
Facing the church, look to the wall on the left which is marked
CAI-FIRENZE-ITIN-1
Settignano
Compiobbi
SENTIERO DEGLI DEI
This is Via Peramonda, perhaps anciently a military road or a trade route. After a few strides along this road we see the entrance to Fiesole Camping Site on the left. Proceeding downhill, a keen eye should be lifted to enjoy the views over the far-off hills with their large farmsteads and elegant villas which beckon us over the valleys for a visit.
Turning right at the main road, we walk on for a few minutes to the local bus area on the right, which is little more than a clearing at the roadside and walk down into the wood from the top side of this area and follow the path running parallel to the main road to the left above it. This path through the wood will soon meet a narrow road at a T-junction where we take a right turn and walk straight on, disregarding the barrier across the track on the right.
Look carefully for the CAI signs on the tree at the entrance to this rough stony way, more suitable for cartwheels and the cloven hoof, and we can stroll on beside the tall rushes on the right and to a once admirable, yet still dominating, wayside shrine on the left. One of the thousand tumbling wayside shrines in Tuscany, worthy of a scholar’s quotation or an artist’s affection. The face of a young cherub looks down with mock humility as if offering a prayer for burdened wayfarers with a long road behind, and nowhere to go.
In those days gone by a place of worship, rest