'Gaggio's book is a masterful analysis that shows how the beauty of Tuscany, rather than being a natural feature of its landscape, is a fragile product of history - or rather, the many histories of its peasants and land-lords, locals and travelers.' Angelo Matteo Caglioti, Journal of Interdisciplinary History
Introduction; 1. Race, nation, land: reclaiming Tuscany's hill country under Fascism; 2. Newer beginnings: the landscape of social strife; 3. Left behind: the rural exodus; 4. The uses of emptiness: rural Tuscany after the exodus; 5. The farmhouse and the museum: Tuscany as patrimony; 6. Searching for the Bel Paesaggio: norming and litigating the landscape; Conclusion; Index.