The village is located on the northern slope of Poggio Ballone, east of Scarlino, in an area extremely rich in terms of mining, especially for large deposits of the iron ore pyrite which were intensively exploited until the early 1980s.

The town is known because of Pia de' Tolomei (whose fate is related in the "Purgatory" cantoes of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri), and for being the birthplace of the writer Giuseppe Bandi, Italian patriot and journalist.

The Etruscan territory of Gavorrano fell under the direct control of Vetulonia which, through the paths along the river valleys of Sovata and Bruna, was rich in deposits of minerals to flow around the Lake Accesa.

In addition to agricultural resources, the population took advantage of the benefits of their strategic position which allowed control over the flow of minerals to the manufacturing center of Vetulonia.

A chapter in the history of the village of Gavorrano concerns the life of Pia de' Tolomei, a lady from Siena who met her death in the Castel di Pietra, a castle in the east of the town.