On November 1, 1954, between 7:30 and 8:00 in the morning, Rosa Lotti Dainelli, a peasant from the Tuscany region of Italy, experienced something extraordinary: a close encounter with the occupants of a UFO.
That year was one of the most significant in global ufology, marked by a massive wave of sightings and reports. In Europe alone, over ten thousand cases were documented, while in Brazil, the state of Rio Grande do Sul stood out as the region with the most records.
At the time of the event, Rosa lived in a small house in the middle of a forest, about two kilometers from the village of Cennina, near Bucine, on the Chanti La Collina farm, close to the town of Capannoli in the province of Arezzo.
The area was remote, with no paved roads, poor communication infrastructure, and recently introduced electricity. To give an idea of its isolation, in 1954, the locality had just over 4,300 inhabitants.
That morning, Rosa was heading to the Church of Cennina for the 8:00 Mass. Since it had rained the night before and the roads were muddy, she walked barefoot, carrying her shoes and socks in one hand and a bouquet of carnations in the other, intending to offer them at the altar of the Pilgrim Virgin.
Around 7:30 AM, Rosa spotted a strange object landed in the forest. It had the shape of two overlapping spindles—cylindrical tools used for spinning wool and cotton. This comparison may have been the only reference Rosa had to describe what she saw.
At the time, workers were installing the first electricity cables in the region, using equipment unfamiliar to her. However, the object stood out, arousing her curiosity.
As she approached, Rosa saw two small beings emerging from the craft and walking toward her. They were about one meter tall, dressed in dark brown uniforms with hoods, and constantly smiling. Their bright eyes radiated intelligence and curiosity. They had wide, short teeth, slightly protruding like a rabbit’s, and wore leather discs over their ears along with a similar band on their foreheads.
The beings attempted to communicate with Rosa, speaking in an unknown language. Unable to understand, she assumed they were foreign workers employed by the electricity company.
One of them gently took the bouquet of carnations and one of her socks, walked back to the craft, and placed the items inside. He then returned, holding a round, brown object, seemingly covered in leather. Rosa asked for her belongings back, but the being only smiled and offered her the mysterious object. Uninterested, she declined and hurried on to the church.
There, she recounted the incident to some women, who passed the story on to the priest. From that moment, the case gained attention, being reported in several Italian newspapers.
Eighteen years later, the case was reinvestigated, revealing intriguing details. During a new interview, Rosa stated that she had not felt fear during the encounter—only later, when reflecting on the event. This contradicted earlier reports claiming she had been terrified.
She also corrected previous information, stating that the encounter occurred at 6:30 AM, not 7:30 AM. Additionally, she provided a more detailed description of the beings and their craft, mentioning that they were "well-shaven" and that one of them took a small brown cardboard package from inside the craft, possibly to photograph her.
Rosa’s account was not the only one. Other residents of the region reported unusual phenomena at the same time and date. Here are some of their testimonies:
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Romualdo Berti, a 25-year-old bricklayer, saw a luminous object rising vertically from the forests of Cennina, emitting flames and heading toward Badia a Ruoti.
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A worker from San Leonino, a hunter in the Ambra region, reported seeing a luminous object land in the same forest.
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Luigi Dini, an employee of the Florence Court of Appeals, and his daughter witnessed a strange object flying over Pratomagno, heading toward Arezzo.
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At 11:45 PM on the same day, nine people across three different locations in the region saw an object similar to the one described by Rosa, emitting an extremely bright light. Among the witnesses were mechanic Gino Pianigini and parish priest Don Nevio Rossi.
The most surprising testimony came from two brothers, Ampelino and Marcello Torzini, who were children at the time and tending to pigs on the morning of the event. They saw Rosa speaking with the beings and described the UFO as a "spindle." Alarmed, Marcello called their father, but by the time they returned, all that remained was a hole in the ground.
Over the years, Rosa maintained her account until her passing in 2006. The case remains one of Italy’s most intriguing UFO encounters, reinforced by the large number of witnesses.
