The world seems to be shrinking, day by day. More of it seems within reach than ever before.

But plenty of nooks and crannies of human existence remain outside our body of knowledge.

For instance, the Italian city of San Gimignano.

San Gimignano is a tourist magnet?

Who knew?

Located, as it is, between Florence and Siena, it would seem as if little San Gimignano (population 7,100) could easily be overlooked.

But it remains on the agendas of many Tuscany tourists who know about the quaint little town atop a hill … and have heard about its “magnificent skyline” — a function of the 14 medieval towers that have survived down through the centuries.

Apparently, the Black Plague, which hit San Gimignano in 1348 and may have killed half its residents, would eventually be helpful to the city’s descendants, six centuries later.

The city was so devastated by the plague that it seems to have dropped out of history. And when other Tuscan cities were recovering, and going through 600-plus years of urban renewal, which often included tearing down many of the towers in town … San Gimignano, forgotten and a backwater, kept much of its medieval past that other cities lost. Nobody was in a hurry to tear down that crumbling tower to put up something modern and boring.

That “sense of the 1300s” probably was the primary lure for Tuscan tourists, who arrive by the bus-load every day in the summer.

But of late, a significant factor is the shop — Gelateria Dondoli — that bills itself as selling the “world’s best gelato”.

Which is a matter of opinion, of course, but certainly leads a person to want to put the topic to the test.

The line was 25 people long when we mosied over, after lunch, in the Piazza della Cisterna, in the heart of the city.

We were greeted by the owner and “master gelato maker” Sergio, a jovial man of about 50 (and who wouldn’t be jovial with a line out the door?) who asked us where we were from (California? Ahh! San Diego? Los Angeles!) and gladly gave out recommendations on what to buy.

I had the rosemary raspberry, which was like eating a frozen version of the fruit — with rosemary. It wasn’t like there were chunks of berry in it; it was smooth. Smooth and tangy. We also tried pistachio and chocolate Grand Marnier — based on the French liqueur.

Best gelato in the world? Haven’t tried them all, but it must be in the running.

Flavors Sergio has invented include champelmo (sparkling wine and grapefruit) and dolceamaro (cream with aromatic herbs).

He also likes to put flower flavors into his gelato. In addition to the rosemary raspberry, he sells the blackberries with lavender and “curva Fiesola” — ricotta and bilberries.

The place is so popular that a half-dozen employees behind the counter are ready to prepare your “cornetto” — or put your gelato in a cup.

And it is a good thing if you already know what you want (like, by asking Sergio for a recommendation) … because the employees inside are asking you to move things along, and you know another couple of dozen people are waiting to get inside.

Gelateria Dondoli has competition, too. Barely 25 yards away is another shop proclaiming itself “best in the world” — but without the publicity to back up the claim.

So, yes, San Gimignano: Come for the medieval towers … stay for the gelato.