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Villa Isnard - Pisa in Tuscany

This villa is characterised by a sloping slate roof decorated with black drops; the narrow and long windows as well as the central tower give the villa the appearance of an ancient castle. The villa belongs to the French heiress M.me Maria Isnard who, after marrying the rich Aurelio Bianchi from Florence, had it built at the beginning of the 20th century, thus transferring an architectonic style from the Côte d’Azur to Tuscany. The villa was visited only by nobles and important people, among whom was the young Giuseppe Cei (probably M.me Maria Isnard’s lover), who attended the flight school of Paris and lost his life during a flight in 1911. Today the villa is abandoned; the owner Emilio Isnard lives in Nice. The restoration work of the roof (February 1998) brought to light old ghost stories and legends. It is said that a big chestnut stood in the garden of the adjacent Villa Bianchi, whose leaves represented the soul of a member of the Bianchi family who frightened the passers-by in the night. It is also said that a wall, which divided the two villas, was built by day and was found lying on the ground the morning after. Strange events were believed to happen inside the two villas, with frightening noises and moving furniture which scared the life of the tenants.

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