Samuel Aranda for The New York Times
ROME — Name another golf community that shares its heritage with the Etruscans or was once a battlefield for medieval noblemen whose families produced a Who’s Who of popes. But wait, it gets better.
The Olgiata, as this tangle of woodland is called, has been invaded by barbarians. It was traded among families, put up for auction and given as a wedding gift.
Once flax was abundant here, as were barley and oats. In the 20th century, Olgiata was the home of the immortal racehorses Nearco and Ribot.