Marcus Travel Journal
2024 - Umbria
photo: mytravellinglens.com
Returning to Umbria
On our 2023 travels we enjoyed our time in Umbria very much so we returned this year. Information n the Region is also included in our Travel Journal.
Montefalco
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It was great to return to the Montefalco area. I find the landscape in this area to be very appealing.
Montefalco is a relatively small town with a population of under 6,000 that sits on a hill with its walls and a gate for protection. It has been in existence from pre-Roman times and still has made of its historic medieval buildings. It was for over 400 years part of the Papal States. Today it holds the I Borghi più belli d'Italia designation (most beautiful villages of Italy).
This year met friends from Vancouver who were also in Italy for lunch at the excellent restaurant L'Alchimista, located on the Piazza Comune., This restaurant is worth a detour to enjoy!
The town is enclosed by its old walls with gates allowing traffic into the town. Despite staying near Montefalco for a couple of years, we have yet to visit the Church of San Francisco on the Piazza del Comune. It has frescoes depicting scenes of the life of St Francis. of Assissi. The church of Sant'agostino and Santa Chiara are also noted.
Medieval Towns
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As I drove the area I did additional research and found that the Romans had two of their roads cross, just South West of Montefalco. The Roman Roads became Medieval roads and the area has a number of old medieval towns and castles.
One of the old towns I visited was Montecchio (Province of Perugaia) located along SR316.. There are a few other towns with the same name,
This small ancient town was build on the Roman Consular road build by Censor Caio Flaminio in 220 BC to connect Rome and the Adriatric ports. There is a sign by the old gate through the wall referencing Caio Flaminio. I think from what I have read, this was the western branch of the famous Roman road.
Castles
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Not only were the old villages interesting to see, but then I started to look up the locations of abandoned castles. After the Roman Empire ended, the routes were used for medieval travel. and there is a network of castles for defence purposes.
- The Castello di Spelta is a 13th Century castle. As with many castles, they became the shell for people to live in. For example, in 1857 there were 69 people, in 13 families in 12 houses living within the walls of the castle. No one lives there now, it is privately owned and there is some, very little, restoration work being done.
- Buffalini Castle, San Giustino. A military fortress complete with drawbridge and corner towers. Became the residence of the Bufalini Family. Great garden to see with water features and flowers.
- Roca Flea, Gualdo TAdino. Dominates the town. An example of Italian fortified architecture of the late Middle Ages. Houses civic museum with impressive art collection.
- Rocca Albornoziana, Spoleto. Part of original defence system of the area by the Papal States when Pope Innocent VI was in Avignon. Has been a place of temporary residence for popes and other famous people.
- Rock of Alviano, Alviano. Built and rebuilt a number of times. We see the 15th Century military architecture style. Inside are frescoed rooms and there is said what is an extraordinary courtyard.
- Acera Castle, Campello sul Clitunno. Stands high on the ancient Roman route from Spoleto to the Adriatic Sea.
Convento di San Fortunato
I somehow never made to the Convento di San Fortunato last year and it is on my list of destination for this trip . It is located about a kilometre away from Montefalco. on the road that goes from Montefalco to Castello di Fabbri and Trevi. It was built on the site where, in the 4th century, a Roman basilica once stood. The convent is small but with impressive frescoes.
San Giustino
This is an outing we can do on our next trip About an hour Montelfaco is the town of San Giustino, it is near the boarder of Umbria and Tuscany and noted for the imposing castle in the heart of the village. Originally a fortress, the Castello Bufalini was turned into a grand castle by the Bufalini family. What we see today are the results of renovations in the 16th Century. The gardens were added in the 17th C. The castle is open for visit on the weekend.
Museum Complex of San Francesco
A prestigious museum in Umbria. Via Ringhiera Umbra, 6
Montefalco
It is composed of: Church of San Francesco with rich internal decoration and the first nucleus of the convent. Civic Art Gallery, Archaeological section, cellars of the friars and exhibition spaces for temporary exhibitions. The frescoes are noted as being impressive.
Collazzone
photo: mytravellinglens.comTucked under Lago Trasimeno, it is about 1 1/2 hours from either Gubbio or Montefalco.
On top of a 170 metre-high hill, the village medieval origins has keep the ancient Longbard military architecture with medieval walls, towers and small alleys.
Canalicchio
For our next trip to this area I will have to visit Canalicchio, located about 45 minutes from Montefalco, It is described as a magical antique castle-town in Umbria. The charming stone buildings and cobbled streets were built in the Middle Ages, sprouting up around the characteristic Castello di Poggio. The castle itself was constructed in the 10th and 11th centuries by the Longbards as a rural outpost near Peruvian.
Today it's a compact but cute town with flower boxes and pretty panoramas. It perfectly preserves the ancient architecture, and hosts an upscale vacation resort complex and spa.
A small town with a year round population of ten people!
Campello sul Clitunno
I do not know why I did not visit this town on our 2023 travels to this area. It is on the list for our next visit. The intriguing village of Campello sul Clitunno, about 12 minutes from Montefalco, sits squarely on the hilltop above the Via Flaminia, just north of Spoleto. I have seen some references to the town as being named: Pissignano. The walled town stands like a medieval relic, beckoning to be visited and well worth the short detour up the hill to see the Old World atmosphere that it preserves. Still cradled within its stone protective walls, the village still looks basically like it did in the 1300s. The castle that created the hamlet is still there, along with a polygonal shaped tower. Campello could be used for a movie set in the Middle Ages!
Arrone
Located about 50 minutes south of Montefalco. Arrone is a lovely-looking hamlet on a hill in southern Umbria. It is divided into two distinct parts. Around the base is the newer Santa Maria quarter, home to the Chiesea di Santa Maria Assunta, a 15th-century church bearing head-turning frescoes by artists including Vincenzo Tamagni and Giovanni da Spoleto. As you ascend Arrone’s steep, meandering streets you’ll come to its oldest part, La Terra, where history reverberates about the encircling walls of this beautifully preserved medieval village.
Umbertide
An half an hour from Gubbio is the town of Umbertide. I had high expectations but we missed the historic centre. I had read there was a broad new development that surrounds the old centre. So broad, I never saw the centre. We will have to do another take for this town.
It is said to be so well-preserved are some of its historic buildings that if someone led you here blindfolded and whipped it away, you may think you have been transported in time. The immaculate Rocca di Umbertide: a medieval castle that formed the guarding entrance to the citadel. Other highlights include the church of Santa Maria della Reggia, an unconventionally octagonal building housing paintings by Niccolò Circignani; see, too, just beyond town, the Civitella Ranieri Foundation – a dramatic castle and artists’ residence.
Assissi
We will have to wait until our next trip to the area to revisit Assissi. It has been a few decades since we have been there.
Perugia
The Cassero di Porta Sant'Angelo
This may be on our list for the next trip. The e Cassero di Porta Sant'Angelo, the largest of the city's medieval gates, is one of the last remaining intact defensive towers in the city, as well as being another privileged observation point over Umbrian sunsets. Located at the beginning of Corso Garibaldi, the Cassero di Porta Sant'Angelo offers a rare view once you climb to the top. If the Keep is closed or inaccessible, you can always enter the green Sant'Angelo Park, which lies behind the tower, and from there enjoy the beauty of the valley below.
Tempio di Sant'Angelo
About a 45 minute drive from our apartment, it is an octagonal temple located outside of Perugia. Dates to the 5th/6th C, incorporates coreinthian caped columns from a prior pagan temple. Locatwd in the Borgo Sant'Angelo, near the ancient northern gate (Porta Szant'Anmgelo) to the city.
Rasiglia
Located about 36 km from our apartment just outside Montefalco is the town of Rasiglia. The town has historical old stone houses, narrow alleys, small wooden bridges, and lively streams that flow from the Menotre River, complete with waterfalls. The village is small with less than sixty small houses.
The village dates back to the 12th century. The village was on the famous Via della Spina, an important road where trade and commerce between the cities along the Adriatic Sea coast and the city of Rome took place. The Via della Spina was later replaced by other less bristling streets.
From Foligno take the state road 319 "Sellanese" that leads to the upper Valnerina, immediately after its detachment from the state road 77 in Casenove. The village is close to the road that crosses it.
Nerarby is:
Capodacqua
There are two towns with the same name, one two hours away, and one in the Province of Perugia, 28 km, 30 minutes from our Apartment. Take the SR316 and then the SS3. The town has less than 100 inhabitants. It is described as a charming hamlet, in and around Capodacqua are:
Cascate del Menotre - Beautiful waterfalls that are a must-see.
Parrocchia di San Giovanni Battista in San Giovanni Profiamma - a historic church.
Borgo Antico di Colle Pino - a historic site worth visiting.
Acquedotto Romano di Spello - aAn ancient Roman aqueduct.
Abbazia St. Benedict - it may be open.
Citta di Castello
A little over an hour (89km) from Montefalco is the town of Città di Castello. The town is surround by stretches of the 16th Century walls. the 11th C cathedral is said to be impressive. The Chiesa di San Domenico , the largest church in the town has decorative frescoes in the cloisters. Built between 1662-67 1662 and 1667 and recently acquired by the city council, the double-sided cloister of overlapping arches lends additional distinction and brightness to the imposing complex of the former Dominican convent.
Verchiano
Located down the road from Resiglia is the village of Verchiano which dates back to the about 3rd C BC because of its position on the major communication route of the time. The historic centre has the church of Santa Maria Assunta which in the 14th Century had 48 neighbouring churches under its control. Opposite the church is the Palazzo Barnocchi.
Near Verchiano is the church of San Salvatore, an important sanctuary located at the top of the mountain of the same name.1,150 m above sea level. Originally a Benedictine abbey, dating to 1334. Blessed Paoluccio Trinci died in the sanctuary in 1390 and was buried there; his body was transferred to Verchiano about a century later.
Further down the road, a short photo shoot is the very small group of buildings that make up Spina Nuova.
Silvignano
The village is a municipality of Spoleto, between the Pettino and Spina Valleys, on the secondary route between Poreta and Campello. It probably originated as a control point of the pass by the Poreta castle. There is a small 16th C building, now used as a period residence, decorated with an elegant loggia with arches resting on polygonal pillars, the so-called " Silvignano arch ". The centre of the village preserves a beautiful votive shrine and two churches, San Matteo , long used as a warehouse, and the parish church of San Giovanni Evangelista , built in various phases, which preserves remains of a brick wall attributable to the 12th century.
Along the road, next to the Church of San Bartolo, is the modest little church dedicated to the Madonna delle Grazie. Must see in the area Sacred Shrine of Silvignano Church of San Bartolo Castle of Poreta
Temple of Clitunno - Campello sul Clitunno
The Tempietto del Clitunno is a small temple-shaped chapel, in the municipality of Campello sul Clitunno, in the hamlet of Pissignano. It stands on the slope of the S. Benedetto hill. Considered one of the most interesting early medieval monuments in Umbria, it is among the seven jewels of Lombard art and architecture in Italy that have recently been included in the prestigious list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Among the most attractive elements of the visit is the suggestive position, already described by Pliny the Younger as a place covered by "ancient and shady cypresses at whose feet a spring flows that forms a small lake". The building, which reuses architectural elements from the Roman era perhaps belonging to the structures of a previous sanctuary dedicated to the god Clitumnus (a deity identified with Jupiter), has the shape of a classical temple: it rests on a high podium with a front made up of four Corinthian columns (tetrastyle pronaos) that supports the trabeation on which runs the inscription dedicating the church to the "God of angels".
Trevi
Trevi is a small town rich in history and art. Once a province of the Papal States, noble families gave much of the artistic and cultural heritage to the town. The view of Trevi running down the hillside as you approach is very beautiful and a highlight of a visit. The medieval centre of Trevi is a network of alleys and narrow streets still surrounded in part by the original defensive walls (built in the 13th century). The raised position of the town means it also has some exceptional views across the Umbria countryside as far as Assisi and beyond.
In centre see the Palazzo Valenti and Palazzo Comunale, arcades and porticos, vaulted passageways and features of architectural interest which make Trevi one of our favourite villages in the region. There are many churches.
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The Church of Madonna delle Lagrime was built in the early 16th century with a Renaissance portal.
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The Church of San Francesco has a portal is surmounted by a lunette with a 14th century fresco, while inside you can see 14th and 15th century frescoes and a 14th century crucifix by the so-called "Master of the Crucifix of Trevi". The church has an impressive organ built around 1509. The cloister annexed to the convent has frescoes by Bernardino Gagliardi, a painter who was very active in Trevi around 1645, and telling the stories of the life of Saint Francis. The former convent houses the local Art Gallery, including an altarpiece by Spagna.
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The Church of Sant’Emiliano (12th C) in Romanesque style. The façade has a 15th century portal crowned with a pediment with a fine relief representing "Sant'Emiliano between the Lions”. The interior holds valuable works of art.
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Along Via San Martino, we find the Chapel of St. Jerome, painted by Spagna.
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Nearby there is the 14th century Church of San Martino with its convent and a portal showing a fresco painting by Tiberio di Assisi (1470-1524).of the "Virgin and Child between two adoring angels." Inside there are also some works of Pierantonio Mezzastris (second half of the 15th century) such as the Madonna with Saints on the church altar and another work by Ascensidonio Spacca (1557-1646).
Montegabbione
About 70 km/ 1.15 hrs from our apartment is the hill top town of Montegabbione. Montegabbione recounts its ancient history with its walls, castle, entrance tower and watchtowers that stand out from the square, sentinels that once protected the town. The territory surrounding the village is characterised by a breathtaking landscape: the hills alternate as far as the eye can see, covered like a mantle with olive trees and vineyards, cultivated with passion and patience, with ancient and always the same gestures.
In the town of Montegrabbione, sources indicated there is plenty to see:
Medieval City Wall and Castle - The original nucleus of Montegabbione, dating back to around the year 10001.
Entrance Tower - A 15th-century tower with a clear military structure.
Church of Madonna delle Grazie - Built in 1625, this church features a beautiful fresco depicting the Madonna del Latte from the 16th century.
Abbey of Aqualta - The ruins of this abbey are located nearby and offer a glimpse into the town’s historical past (I do not see an indicators on the Michelin Map, so it will be a matter if there are signs.)
But the symbol of this hamlet is the Franciscan Convent of Scarzuola: founded by the monk of Assisi in 1218, it was then purchased and renovated in 1956 by the Milanese architect Tommaso Buzzi, who between 1958 and 1978, next to the convent, designed and built his Ideal City, conceived as a 'theatrical machine'.
While Scarzuola is a significant attraction, Montegabbione itself offers a rich history and beautiful scenery that are worth exploring.
Castle in Montegiove
Between Montegabbione and the Castle di Fiori, is Montegiove. The castle is from the 13th Century, it is known as La Scarzuola, and operated as a private farm and tourist site. It sits outside the town on a crest. The tiny medieval hamlet of Montegiove is said to pack a dramatic punch with its perfectly preserved castle resting on the crest.
Castle di Fiori
The village of Pastel di fiori, (not far from Montegiabbione) is in a scenic countryside and surrounded by woods.
Recently renovated, the village. surrounded by walls keeps medieval charm, dominated by the Castle (1350) and its tower (1200s). The central square has a statue of the Archangel Michael (1937) by the sculptor Michele Perla, inspired a statue in the Sanctuary of Saint Michael the Archangel in Monte Sant'Angelo, in the province of Foggia. The church of Santa Maria Maddalena is found on the central square, rebuilt between the 17th and 18th centuries, probably on the ruins of the ancient castle church. The building, built in stone, has a single nave. Inside, in the niche on the back wall, there is a Marian mural, while along the left wall is the niche of Santa Maria Maddalena.
Faiolo
The village of Faiolo is 3 kilometres from Montegabbione. It is a small town of 186 people and most the information on the Internet is a blending of information for the town of Montegrabbione or the privately held La Scarzuola. It will be a seek-and-find experience when I am in the area.
Pornello
This would be a stop on the way back from Montegabbione, Castle di Fiori and Monteigeiove. It is the remains of a castle.
The castle is referenced as far back as 1137. or several years, Pornello became a theatre of war. sacked with continuous clashes between the various Monaldeschi families, passing first into the hands of the Monaldeschl della Cervara (also called Muffati ) then into the hands of the Monaldeschl della Cervara (also called Muffati for the mockery suffered) until it became a fief and stable possession of the counts of Marsciano, who exercised every jurisdiction there, at least until they also allowed the men of this land to give themselves a Statute (1529). Later, passed to the Dolci family, descendants of the Montemarte.
In 1769 during a census based on the declarations of the parish priests, Pornello has 133 inhabitants.
Today it is in decay, vegetation has taken over.
San Venanzo
On the drive back from Montegabbione is the small town of San Venanzo. Sights in San Venanzo include the large Tower that rises above the rest of the town, the remains of the medieval castle, the Church of the Madonna Liberatrice, which has a panel by from school of Perugino, and Villa Faina, a historic edifice in the heart of town.
Nearby, the area is dotted with a myriad of medieval towers and castles in the outlying hamlets of Rotecastello, San Vito in Monte, Pornello, Ripalvella, Poggio Aquilone, Civitella dei Conti, and Collelungo. Other places of interest are the Sanctuary of the Madonna della Luce, and Ospedaletto, an area popular with tourists for its pine woods.
Notes on Towns
Torre del Colle - this is a small hamlet on a hill, protected by ancient walls. There are no bars, but evidently one restaurant and a hostel. It is mentioned as it is a 45 minute walk from Bevagna.