with daughter Donata at La Foce, 1943 La Foce lies on the
Via Francigena, the ancient road and pilgrim route running from
France to
Rome). It has been inhabited continuously for many centuries. The Villa was built in the late 15th century as a
hospice for pilgrims and merchants traveling on the Via Francigena. The late 15th-century villa was restored by the Origos in the 1920s with government financial assistance. The fine gardens were designed by the English architect
Cecil Pinsent – "the last great Italian garden by Pinsent" in the words of horticulturist television presenter
Monty Don. Pinsent had created several other gardens in Tuscany, including those at
Villa Le Balze and
Villa I Tatti, where Iris's mother was a frequent guest of Bernard Berenson, who had commissioned Pinsent's
first Italian garden about twenty years earlier. The Origos employed 25 families and started a school to teach and ensure the well-being of some 50 local children. Descendants of the family still own the property today and operate it as a resort. ==In popular culture==