Montevarchi was born as a market town called “Mercatale” along the main road which connected Arezzo to Florence. The town passed under the jurisdiction of Florence in 1273, from that moment it became a border stronghold and an important centre for commerce. It became therefore necessary make sure the town was well protected, therefore the Florentine administration built the city walls in 1328 enclosing the city in an oval shape. The fortification had two doors at the top and the bottom of Via Roma. The doors were Porta Fiorentina ( destroyed in the XX Century) and Porta Aretina, other five smaller doors, and some small towers also existed; the most important of the towers was the one called: “Il Cassero “

Il Cassero’s function was therefore military: “… The soldiers come down from the tower to rest once their turn of duty is over…” (Conti, 1770).
The changing political and economic climate affected Montevarchi over the following centuries:the fortifications lost their importance and some were destroyed while others were incorporated into houses.  The historic centre changed and at the end of XVIII century and Il Cassero was sold; However, the new owner did not modifiy its structure.

In 1996 The Provincial Administration of Arezzo conceded the use of the structure to the Town Hall of Montevarchi which decided to restructure it.
In order to carry out the renovations, Montevarchi Town Council, in accordance with art.12 of law n. 537 of 24.12.1993,  received funds from the Tuscan Regional Government and the project entitled “Building work for the consolidation and salvaging of Il Cassero” was approved. The Town Council of Montevarchi began work on Il Cassero with the objective of transforming it into a museum and archive.

The works contained in the collection of Il Cassero document all the materials of traditional sculpture.