Within Tuscan UFO Files
What Happened on the Road at Torrita?
Rivo Faralli's account of a landed object and small figures is Tuscany's most dramatic close encounter, but it rests heavily on one witness.
On this page
- The fireball, noise and power interruption
- Faralli's account of the object and figures
- How the story changed in circulation
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Introduction
On the evening of 17 September 1978, Rivo Faralli, a young barber from Torrita di Siena, said that his Fiat 127 stopped near his mother’s home as a brilliant object descended over the road. He later described two small, helmeted figures emerging from the object, floating around his car and returning to it before it departed with light and noise. Earlier that evening, other residents had reported a reddish fireball, a loud disturbance and a brief loss of electricity.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
This is arguably Tuscany’s most dramatic close-encounter claim, but not its strongest UFO case. The alleged craft and figures were seen only by Faralli. There are no photographs, no preserved object and no securely documented laboratory evidence establishing that the marks found nearby were caused by anything unusual. Later investigation added useful detail, but also exposed confusion over timings, witness numbers, physical traces and even the appearance of the supposed occupants. The case is therefore best treated as a sincere but unverified personal experience surrounded by weaker, partly independent reports.
The fireball, noise and power interruption
The Torrita story did not begin with Faralli’s encounter on the road. According to later reconstructions, shortly after 8 p.m. a local nurse, Ultimina Boscagli, was walking home when she heard what she described as a powerful noise that seemed to move the air. She reported seeing a red luminous sphere with yellow-orange edges travelling rapidly eastwards and leaving a reddish trail. Her 12-year-old son Riccardo also said that the surrounding house, road and trees became brightly illuminated; his description distinguished a reddish lower part from a white upper section.[corteditoriale.com]corteditoriale.comUF O IN LIBERTÀUF O IN LIBERTÀ
Faralli’s mother, Santina, who lived nearby, reportedly heard the same disturbance while watching television. The electricity failed briefly, after which she noticed a glow outside. Faralli visited her later that evening and was told about the light and noise, although he said he did not initially attach much importance to them.[corteditoriale.com]corteditoriale.comUF O IN LIBERTÀUF O IN LIBERTÀ
These reports matter because they suggest that something conspicuous may have been seen or heard in Torrita before the alleged roadside encounter. They do not, however, independently confirm Faralli’s landed object. Boscagli and her son described an aerial light roughly an hour or more earlier; Santina reported a glow and a short power interruption rather than a structured craft. None of them witnessed the two figures, the inspection of the car or the object’s departure from the road.
A bright meteor or fireball could account for several features of the earlier episode: a rapidly moving luminous sphere, a coloured trail, a flash bright enough to illuminate the landscape and, in some circumstances, a delayed explosive sound. That possibility has not been proved for the 1978 event because no contemporary astronomical record tying a meteor to Torrita has surfaced in the accessible documentation. It nevertheless shows why the earlier light should not automatically be treated as the arrival of the object Faralli later described.
The reported electricity failure is similarly difficult to assess. A brief domestic interruption would be consistent with the electrical-interference theme common in close-encounter narratives, but no surviving utility record has been produced to demonstrate a wider blackout or an unusual fault in the local network. The available sources preserve witness recollection, not technical confirmation.
Faralli’s account of the object and figures
Faralli said that he left his mother’s home at about 9 or 9.30 p.m. and drove away in his Fiat 127. Within a short distance, according to his later account, both the engine and the headlights failed. He then saw an intense, phosphorescent light and a luminous object shaped rather like a broad hat or domed hemisphere in front of the car. Published reconstructions commonly give it a diameter of roughly three metres and place it just above the road.[corteditoriale.com]corteditoriale.comUF O IN LIBERTÀUF O IN LIBERTÀ
He claimed that an opening appeared and two beings emerged. In his 2011 recollection, he described them as short, apparently floating rather than walking, with lean faces partly visible through helmets. They moved around the Fiat and seemed more interested in the vehicle than in him. After completing this circuit, they returned to the object, which rose rapidly and disappeared.[corteditoriale.com]corteditoriale.comUF O IN LIBERTÀUF O IN LIBERTÀ
Later catalogues supplied further details: greenish clothing, large helmets, transparent face sections and projections resembling antennae. The reported height varies noticeably between summaries, from about one metre to roughly one and a half metres. Some versions say that three beams extended from the object to the road; others speak more generally of light radiating in several directions.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
Those variations do not prove fabrication. Descriptions can change when testimony is translated, condensed for catalogues or retold after many years. But they do limit attempts to reconstruct the alleged scene precisely. It is often unclear whether a detail came directly from Faralli’s earliest statement, from an investigator’s interpretation, from an artist’s reconstruction or from later writers combining separate reports.
The central evidential problem is simpler: Faralli was the only known witness to the object at close range and the only person who reported the figures. Some catalogues misleadingly describe the case as involving two or more witnesses because they combine the earlier fireball observers with the later roadside episode. In evidential terms, these were different observations at different times. The close encounter itself rests on one person’s testimony.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
Faralli’s behaviour after the event has often been cited in his favour. He reportedly told his wife, was reluctant to approach the police for fear of ridicule and continued to describe the experience decades later without presenting himself as an extraterrestrial contactee. In 2011 he said that publicity had made his life difficult and that some people accused him of inventing the story for attention. He also recalled temporary burning in his eyes, fainting, depression and intense fear that lasted well beyond the incident.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
Such distress may support the conclusion that the experience felt real to him. It cannot establish what caused it. A sincere witness may still misperceive an event, experience a vivid psychological episode or unintentionally reshape a memory through repeated interviews. Conversely, the lack of an obvious financial motive does not transform a single-witness account into physical evidence.
The dark marks on the road
The most important apparent physical evidence consisted of darkened areas found on the stony road. Faralli later spoke of three black marks that looked as though the ground had been exposed to extreme heat. Curious visitors gathered stones from the site, and investigators reportedly took samples or cores. One retrospective account describes a blackened ring about 50–60 centimetres across, with irregular edges, and acknowledges that souvenir hunters quickly disturbed it.[corteditoriale.com]corteditoriale.comUF O IN LIBERTÀUF O IN LIBERTÀ
Secondary sources state that material was analysed at laboratories associated with the European nuclear research centre at Ispra. They report no radioactivity, magnetisation, anomalous elements or unusual compounds, although some samples were said to show exposure to temperatures of approximately 500°C. No original laboratory certificate, full analytical report or documented chain of custody is readily available alongside these claims. The reported result therefore shows, at most, that some collected stones may have been heated; it does not demonstrate what heated them or whether every sample came from the exact alleged landing position.[corteditoriale.com]corteditoriale.comUF O IN LIBERTÀUF O IN LIBERTÀ
The site was compromised almost immediately. Local residents and visitors removed pieces, investigators arrived after the story had begun circulating, and the road did not appear to have been sealed or systematically mapped before disturbance. There is no well-preserved photographic sequence showing the marks before people walked over them, no uncontaminated control sample described in the public accounts and no surviving specimen available for modern independent testing.
More damagingly, an Italian case summary reproduced in a later catalogue says that at least some of the burnt material was linked to the remains of cooking a pork roast. It also notes other scorched patches in the area that appeared to have ordinary origins. This does not necessarily explain every dark spot reported on the road, but it weakens the claim that the traces formed a coherent landing pattern.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
The physical evidence is consequently far less impressive than the phrase “landing marks” suggests. Blackened stones existed, but the connection between those stones and Faralli’s reported object was assumed rather than demonstrated. Once ordinary burning, casual collection and uncertain sample handling are admitted, the traces cannot carry the weight of the encounter claim.
How the story changed in circulation
Torrita occurred during Italy’s extraordinary UFO wave of 1978. A historical review of that year describes September as the point at which reports surged, with hundreds of cases recorded during the month. Against that background, newspapers, UFO groups and the public were already highly attentive to strange lights and predicted landings.[Il Tascabile]iltascabile.comIl Tascabile Dischi volanti sull'ItaliaIl TascabileDischi volanti sull'ItaliaJanuary 4, 2019 — 4 Jan 2019 — 1978 in Italia ci fu un'ondata di avvistamenti UFO senza precedenti…
The timing does not invalidate Faralli’s account, but it affected the way it circulated. The previous year had brought the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind to international audiences, while Italian media were giving extensive attention to UFO reports. Torrita contained nearly every element required for a memorable case: a stalled car, a brilliant craft, small helmeted beings, a blackout, bodily effects and marks on the ground. Its narrative completeness helped it spread far beyond the original local report.
Early press coverage appears to have begun within days. Investigators associated with the National UFO Centre interviewed Faralli, his mother and other residents, and the case entered Italian and foreign UFO publications. Later summaries repeatedly copied one another, sometimes treating all witnesses as observers of the same event and sometimes adding exact dimensions, colours or movements without clearly identifying the original source.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
The resulting inconsistencies include:
- The time: versions place the encounter at around 9 p.m., 9.30 p.m. or within a broader 8.15–9 p.m. sequence.
- The number of witnesses: some entries imply a multi-witness close encounter, although only Faralli reported the object and figures beside the car.
- The beings’ height: estimates range from approximately one metre to about one and a half metres.
- Their movement: some accounts say they floated; others describe them walking or simply moving around the car.
- The craft’s position: it is variously described as landed, hovering above the road or supported by beams of light.
- The traces: reports alternate between three circular burns, a central ring with marks several metres away and a less orderly collection of scorched patches.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
A separate alleged encounter in Torrita several days later also entered some catalogues, involving two motorists, a disc blocking the road and two humanoids examining their vehicle. The surviving entry provides almost no identifying information or primary documentation. Its resemblance to Faralli’s story raises the possibility of duplication, rumour or narrative imitation rather than an independent second landing.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
These changes are important because later retellings can give the impression of a richly corroborated incident. In reality, many details trace back to a narrow circle of reports, while independent documentation remains sparse. Repetition across books, magazines and databases increases the story’s visibility, not necessarily its evidential strength.
What investigators established — and did not
The case attracted prolonged attention from Italian UFO researchers. Marco Bianchini of the Italian Centre for UFO Studies later conducted a counter-investigation and published UFO: Lights and Shadows on the Faralli Case in 2008. His organisation describes the work as a re-examination of a celebrated third-kind encounter involving alleged ground traces and physical effects.[CISU]cisu.orgMarco BianchiniMarco Bianchini - CISUApril 20, 2022 — Ha anche contro-inchiestato un celebre caso di incontro del terzo tipo con tracce sul terreno…
That continuing scrutiny distinguishes Torrita from a casual report that was merely printed and forgotten. Investigators interviewed participants, reconstructed the location, collected earlier publications and examined how the physical-trace claim had developed. The case was still being discussed publicly in Torrita in 2024, when a local event revisited both Faralli’s experience and Bianchini’s book.[La Nazione]lanazione.itLa Nazione Ufo, il caso Faralli è diventato un libroIl fatto coinvolse Rivo Faralli, un cittadino torritese protagonista di un "incontro" particolare.Read more…
Yet the investigation never produced the kind of evidence that could settle the event. There was no photograph of the object, no instrument reading, no police record documenting a craft, no verified medical finding specific to an external exposure and no physical specimen with a secure history from collection to laboratory. Faralli’s Fiat apparently resumed functioning, but no published mechanical examination established what had caused it to stop.
The peripheral witnesses strengthen only a limited proposition: an unusual bright aerial event may have occurred in the area earlier that evening. They do not validate the reported beings. The dark road marks provide no firm bridge between the two episodes because their origins and sample handling remain uncertain.
Nor has later reporting uncovered a hidden official file that resolves the case. Modern coverage largely revisits the same testimony, the same alleged traces and the same local memories. It has kept the story alive, but it has not materially strengthened its factual foundation.
The most plausible assessment
Torrita di Siena should not be described as a confirmed landing, nor can it be cleanly labelled a demonstrated hoax. No decisive evidence has emerged that Faralli deliberately invented his account. His long-term consistency on its central features and his reported distress are compatible with a witness recounting an experience he genuinely believed had happened.
The safest assessment separates the episode into three evidential layers.
The earlier aerial event is plausible but unidentified. Multiple residents reportedly noticed a bright light, noise or temporary electrical interruption. A fireball, an ordinary power fault and the heightened atmosphere of the 1978 UFO wave could explain these elements without requiring a landed craft, although the surviving information is too poor for a confident retrospective identification.
The roadside encounter is uncorroborated. The stalled car, luminous object and two figures come from Faralli alone. There are no contemporary images or independent close-range witnesses. Psychological or perceptual explanations remain possible, but the record does not allow a diagnosis or a definitive reconstruction.
The physical traces are weak evidence. The marks were disturbed, their arrangement was inconsistently reported and at least part of the burning received an ordinary explanation. Claims about laboratory heating tests lack the documentation needed to establish an exotic cause.[Ufology Research]ufologie.patrickgross.orgUfology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop…
Within Tuscany’s UFO history, Torrita remains memorable precisely because it contrasts with the mass sighting over Florence in 1954. Florence involved a large public reaction to distant aerial phenomena; Torrita offered a much more intimate and extraordinary narrative but depended overwhelmingly on one witness. The case’s drama has survived better than its evidence.
Its unresolved status should therefore be understood narrowly. “Unresolved” means that the surviving record cannot establish exactly what Faralli experienced. It does not mean that a non-human craft remains the most likely explanation. Later investigation has clarified the story’s origins and exposed weaknesses in the trace claims, but it has neither proved deception nor supplied independent support for the extraordinary interpretation.
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Endnotes
1.
Source: corteditoriale.com
Title: UF O IN LIBERTÀ
Link:https://www.corteditoriale.com/UFO%20IN%20LIBERTA%CC%80.pdf
2.
Source: cisu.org
Title: Marco Bianchini
Link:https://www.cisu.org/marco-bianchini/
Source snippet
Marco Bianchini - CISUApril 20, 2022 — Ha anche contro-inchiestato un celebre caso di incontro del terzo tipo con tracce sul terreno...
Published: April 20, 2022
3.
Source: ufologie.patrickgross.org
Link:https://ufologie.patrickgross.org/ce3/1978-09-17-italy-torritadisienna.htm
Source snippet
Ufology ResearchURECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog - Patrick Gross17 Sept 1978 — Left: Rivo Faralli, photographed in his barber's shop...
4.
Source: iltascabile.com
Title: Il Tascabile Dischi volanti sull’Italia
Link:https://www.iltascabile.com/scienze/dischi-volanti-italia/
Source snippet
Il TascabileDischi volanti sull'ItaliaJanuary 4, 2019 — 4 Jan 2019 — 1978 in Italia ci fu un'ondata di avvistamenti UFO senza precedenti...
Published: January 4, 2019
5.
Source: lanazione.it
Title: La Nazione Ufo, il caso Faralli è diventato un libro
Link:https://www.lanazione.it/siena/cronaca/ufo-il-caso-faralli-e-diventato-un-libro-c8d56250
Source snippet
Il fatto coinvolse Rivo Faralli, un cittadino torritese protagonista di un "incontro" particolare.Read more...
6.
Source: Wikipedia
Title: Torrita di Siena
Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torrita_di_Siena
7.
Source: ufologie.patrickgross.org
Link:https://www.ufologie.patrickgross.org/ce3/1978-09-17-italy-torritadisiennaf.htm
8.
Source: lanazione.it
Link:https://www.lanazione.it/firenze/cronaca/un-lampo-che-in-12-secondi-ha-attraversato-litalia-ecco-cose-il-bolide-avvistato-anche-sui-cieli-della-toscana-0100ecb1
Additional References
9.
Source: ilcampodisiena.it
Title: “Ufo: fenomeno o mito?”
Link:https://www.ilcampodisiena.it/ufo-fenomeno-o-mito-a-torrita-di-siena-si-raccontano-gli-incontri-ravvicinati/
Source snippet
A Torrita di Siena si raccontano...23 May 2024 — Il fatto è avvenuto nell'ormai lontano 1978 ed ebbe una forte eco mediatica, tanto da d...
Published: May 2024
10.
Source: youtube.com
Title: UFO Sightings Terrify Italy | The Proof Is Out There | History
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybDQGcZjJWI
Source snippet
TOP 4 MYSTERIES OF EUROPE | The Proof Is Out There | History...
11.
Source: war.gov
Link:https://www.war.gov/ufo/
12.
Source: nsa.gov
Link:https://www.nsa.gov/Helpful-Links/NSA-FOIA/Frequently-Requested-Information/UFO-and-Other-Paranormal-Information/
13.
Source: loc.gov
Link:https://www.loc.gov/collections/finding-our-place-in-the-cosmos-with-carl-sagan/articles-and-essays/life-on-other-worlds/ufos-and-aliens-among-us
14.
Source: youtube.com
Title: TOP 4 MYSTERIES OF EUROPE | The Proof Is Out There | History
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PPGvORtxrM
Source snippet
UFOs in Genoa - The Zanfretta Case - Part 1...
15.
Source: youtube.com
Title: UFO Files #7: UFO Invasion in Italy
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhZOvhOFBuw
Source snippet
UFO Sightings Terrify Italy | The Proof Is Out There | History...
16.
Source: visittuscany.com
Link:https://www.visittuscany.com/en/towns-and-villages/torrita-siena/
17.
Source: sienahouse.net
Link:https://www.sienahouse.net/tuscany-guide/torrita-di-siena/
18.
Source: itstuscany.com
Link:https://www.itstuscany.com/en/torrita-di-siena/