Spoleto (Umbria): 396 m a.s.l. -  pop. 40,000 [ MAP ] 

Spoleto: 396 m a.s.l. population 40000

Town of great artistic interest in hilly location dominated by the imposing 13th C. rocca (fortress).

It has medieval features with churches and palazzos, mainly in Romanesque and Renaissance style. Rich in monuments, celebrated by poets and writers such as Stendhal, Goethe, Hesse and many more.  It has been inhabited since the prehistoric age, then became Etruscan and Roman. It had a period of splendor and growth during the Middle Ages.

Duomo: Santa Maria Assunta (Our Lady of the Assumption) Romanesque structure with a central nave and two aisles and transept. It was finished in the 13th C bc. The Romanesque façade is embellished by 5 rose windows, arcades and by the mosaic of “Cristo benedicente” It has a refined portal with sculptured architrave and jamb-stones. There are two pulpits to the sides of the portico. The interior preserves several works of art. The abside shows frescoes of “Episodi della vita della Madonna” (Episodes of the life of Madonna), by Filippo Lippi, the painter is also buried in the church.  The Cathedral also preserves works by Pinturicchio (Pietà, Madonna col Bambino e Santi) and by the sculptor Bernini (Bust of Pope Urbano VIII). The chapel of “Santissima icona” displays a sacred image of Madonna. In front of the Duomo opens a scenographic piazza where every year, in July,  the final concert of Festival dei Due Mondi takes place .
- Rocca Albornoz: the fortress was built by order of Cardinal Albornoz on the hill overlooking Spoleto between 1359 and 1370’s - It housed illustrious personages of the past and was  a papal residence. It is squared shape with six towers. Inside is the Cortile delle Armi, (Courtyard of Arms) and Cortile d’Onore( Courtyard of honour). The courtyard itself is surrounded by a portico on two floors. A large hall looks out onto it, together with the room of the lord of the castle which is called the “Camera Pinta”(painted room) with noteworthy frescoes. The Rocca Albornoz was used until recently as a prison, and looks like one, too. Now it is open to the public and being converted to other uses.  Via del Ponte goes around the Rocca to the south and leads to the Ponte delle Torri, a remarkable medieval bridge over the Tessino. There is an extensive network of footpaths and dirt roads accessible from the far end of the Ponte delle Torri.

The beautiful bridge “Ponte delle Torri” is 236 m long and consists of 10 arcades, each up to 80m high. A road and an aqueduct built into the stone construction run along the top.
- The Roman theater  is used for dance performances during the Festival dei Due Mondi (Festival of Two Worlds), a performing arts festival held every summer since 1958.

- Ponte Sanguinario: It is so called because tradition says many Christians were myrtirized in this place
- Arco di Druso and Germanico – Built in 23 A.C. it  consists of a great arcade leaning against a medieval buildings. Next to the arch, the remains of a Roman temple are visible under the church of San Ansano
- Roman Temple: Dates to 1st C a.c. and it is included in the crypt of St. Isacco
- Roman house: Seigneurial residence built next to the Forum. It is located on the terracing immediately above Piazza del Mercato. Similar to Roman “Domus” with interesting mosaics on the floor. An inscription ascribes the property of the house to Vespasia Polla, the mother of emperor Vespasian.
- Church of St Gregorio: Church of paleochristian origins finished in the 12th C. It has adorned facade with statues and portico
- Church of St Ansano and Crypt of St. Isacco : it is a very complex church including some pre-pre-existent Roman buildings - On the right side is an altar with a beautiful fresco by Giovanni di Pietro nicknamed Spagna
The Crypt dates back to the 12th C and preserves on the walls fragments of bizantine school  painting ornaments.
- Church of St. Paolo Intervineas(16th C) – It preserves an exquisite fresco cycle of the 1200’s featuring “Profeti e storie dalla creazione del Mondo” (profets and stories for the creation of the world)
- Church of S. Eufemia – Romanesque church dating back to the 12th C.
- Pinacoteca (Picture gallery): It preserves a large collection of works coming from the churches of Spoleto including paintings, ligneous statues, detached frescoes. A particular mention is due to the works of Guercino and Alunno.
- Archelogical Museum – It bears witnesses to the man settling here since the Iron Age and preserves many archeological finds from the Spoleto area.
- Museo Diocesano (Diocesan Museum) : It preserves sculptures and paintings from the 13th C to 18th C
- Modern Art Gallery : On display inside are works by the most important contemporary artists such as: Moore, Calder, Consacra, Pomodoro, Leoncillo etc…
- Museum of Textiles and Costumes. On display are art fabrics and clothing objects such as sacred vestments, embroidery and laceworks.
- Church of “St. Pietro fuori le Mura” : It  emerges on the top of a staircase outside of Spoleto with a beautiful façade adorned with bas-reliefs dating back to the 12th C, among the most interesting il all of  Umbria. Iconography includes sacred objects from the Old Testament. 
- St. Salvatore; It is a paleochristian building built between the 4th and 5th C with scraps of Roman Epoch. Thank to this particularity it has been defined “ The most beautiful monument of antiquity”
- Church of St. Ponziano : honours Spoleto’s Patron Saint. In the crypt are preserved votive frescoes.
Piazza del Mercato. The Roman Forum which stood here held great importance for the social life of the city. This square still represents today the "centre" par excellence. The Baroque Fonte di Piazza (1746), proudly stands out at one end of the square.

- Festival dei Due Mondi / Two worlds Festival) : It runs from the end of June through  the middle of July and is based in Spoleto. The event is the extraordinary creation that the world-class composer Gian Carlo Menotti ideated 50 years ago to bring in Spoleto the most glorious names of the artistic and cultural world. The Spoleto festival is a guarantee of excellence, from operas to orchestral and chamber music, from visual art to cinema and literature, becoming the European and International cultural center.

- Teatro Lirico Sperimentale di Spoleto: Opera season  is usually held in Spoleto in September

- Flea Market: every 2 nd Sunday d of the month :
- August 15 : Feast of Assumption
- Le Vaite: The event takes place from August 15 to the 1st Sunday of September in honour of Lucrezia Borgia who was a Spoleto governor in 1499 and proposes medieval dinners, tournaments, historical parades, conferences, concerts, cinemas, exhibitions and more in a natural and unique scenery. The customed parade and the show of flag-wavers, archers, crossbowmen, chevaliers ends the feast.
- Sept 8 /9 - Big Market dedicated to Madonna di Loreto – On the stalls there is everything

Spoleto is easily reached by frequent trains on the Rome-Ancona line; trains for Assisi and Perugia also stop there.  City buses circulate throughout the town and may serve to save you a twenty minute uphill walk from the train station to the upper town.