Perugia
Perugia, the regional capital, is an ancient city located in central-northern Umbria. The historic center is built on the high hills along the right bank of the Tiber River.
An art town that draws large numbers of visitors, Perugia is a multiethnic and multicultural center with two universities, a synthesis of the region's multifaceted character: culture, art, history, religion, crafts, food and wine, and the natural environment.
THREE "must sees" in PERUGIA
> Palazzo dei Priori
> Fontana Maggiore
> National Gallery of Umbria
HISTORY
Etruscan in origin, Perugia later became a flourishing Roman municipium called "Augusta Perusia". After the fall of the Empire, it suffered the barbarian invasions and was destroyed by Totila and the Goths (547 AD). It was then conquered by Byzantines, and became one of the strongholds of their dominion against the expansion of
the Lombard Duchy of Spoleto. Perugia remained Byzantine until the 8th century, when it came under papal rule, and when it became an independent commune in 1000 AD it remained an ally of the papacy. The friendship with the Church of Rome deteriorated irremediably in the 14th century when Perugia destroyed Foligno, an ally of the Pope: from that time on, Perugia's history was an endless succession of civil struggles, conspiracies, betrayals and wars, until the Papal States under Pope Paul III
took control once and for all. Perugia was deprived of every freedom and independence, and all attempts at overthrowing papal rule were punished with massacres and destruction. In 1860 Perugia was joined to the Kingdom of Italy.
ART AND CULTURE
Perugia has an immense heritage of art and culture, the fruit of its glorious past. One finds monuments everywhere bearing witness to its many centuries of history, art and culture, from its squares to its tiniest alleys, starting with
the Etruscan Arch, also known as the Arch of Augustus, a monumental gate in the ancient Etruscan city walls and later restored in Roman times, the Etruscan Well and Porta Marzia, the second monumental Etruscan gate, now incorporated in a rampart of the Rocca Paolina, a fortress erected by Pope Paul III in 1540.
Standing on Piazza IV Novembre, one of the most beautiful squares in Italy, is the Palazzo dei Priori. An elegant Gothic edifice, it is also the home of the National Gallery of
Umbria, which holds some of the greatest masterpieces of Italian art from the Middle Ages to the 18th century, including works by Piero della Francesca, Benozzo Gozzoli, Beato Angelico, Pinturicchio, and Perugino. Also very fine are the Sala dei Notari, the Collegio del Cambio, the old seat of the money exchangers' guild, with the famous fresco cycle by Perugino and the San Giovanni Battista chapel with 16th-century frescoes, the Collegio della Mercanzia, the Cathedral of San Lorenzo and its
annexed Chapter Museum, and the gorgeous Fontana Maggiore, a 13th-century fountain designed by Frà Bevignate of Perugia with bas-reliefs by Nicola and Giovanni Pisano.
Other interesting buildings are the Palazzo del Capitano del Popolo and the Palazzo della Vecchia Università, the old seat of the university and now used as the Perugia Courthouse, Palazzo Donini and Palazzo Cesaroni, respectively the seats of the Umbria Regional Cabinet and the Regional Council, the Palazzo della
Provincia (1870) in the Lombard style, and Palazzo della Penna, an exhibition center with permanent collections and which also hosts temporary exhibits. There is also the elegant theater, Teatro Morlacchi (1788), as well as Palazzo Antinori-Gallenga Stuart (1754), home of the University of Foreigners.
Perugia has many religious buildings worthy of note: the Basilica of San Pietro, with its splendid cloister, the Basilica of San Domenico, next door to the National Archeological Museum
of Umbria and its extensive collection of Umbrian, Etruscan and Roman artifacts, the round Temple of Sant'Angelo, the San Francesco al Prato complex with the former church of San Francesco and the Oratory of San Bernardino, the Church of San Filippo Neri, the San Severo Chapel with a fresco, the Holy Trinity and Saints, painted in part by Raphael and in part by Perugino, the Church of Santa Maria Nuova with a wooden choir and organ built in 1584, the Church of Sant'Ercolano, and the Church of
San Bevignate (13th century).
Other enjoyable visits in town are the Botanical Garden and the Medieval Garden, the latter at the Abbey of San Pietro; places of interest in the nearby area include the Volumni Hypogeum (2nd cent. BC) in Ponte San Giovanni and Perugino's tomb and frescoes by him in Fontignano.
EVENTS
Feast of St. Costanzo, Patron Saint of Perugia (29 January)
Venerelettrica (March)
Rockin'Umbria (June)
GeoAfrica - African Culture Festival (late June-early July)
Umbria Jazz (July)
Tender is the Night - Summer Events (July-August)
International Puppet Festival (July-August)
Feast of St. Lawrence, Patron Saint of Perugia (10 August)
White Night (September)
Perugia Classico (September)
Umbrian Sacred Music Festival (September)
Teatro Morlacchi Theater Season (October-May)
"Amici della Musica" Concert Season (October-May)
Eurochocolate (October)
Umbria Book Fair (November)
Batìk Film Festival (November)
Fiera dei Morti - All Souls' Day Fair (November)
TYPICAL PRODUCTS
Torcolo di San Costanzo (sweet bread with candied fruit, raisins and anise)
Ciaramicola (ring-shaped Easter cake)
Wine: Perugia is part of the Cantico Wine Route
INFORMATION
Commune of Perugia
075.075.075
Website: www.comune.perugia.it
How to get there
A1 motorway: for those coming from the north,
Valdichiana or Chiusi-Chianciano exits. For those coming from the south, Orte, Attigliano, Orvieto, or Fabro exits.
A14 Adriatica motorway: for those coming from the north, Rimini exit (via Città di Castello) or Pesaro/Fano exit (via Gubbio). For those coming from the south, Pescara exit (via Aquila-Rieti-Terni) or Civitanova Marche exit (via Foligno-Perugia).
Tourist Information
IAT - Perugia District
Loggia dei Lanari, Piazza Matteotti 18 - 06100 Perugia
Tel. 075.5736458 / 075.5772686 - Fax 075.5720988
E-mail: info@iat.perugia.it |
