Visit Spello
Spello is situated in the Umbria region of central Italy, between Assisi and Foligno.
Surrounded by the ruins of ancient Roman walls and others built during the Papal domain (the Fortress), you enter the town of Spello through one of the various gates (the “Porta Consolare”, “Porta Venere”, “Porta Urbica”, “Porta Romana” and “Porta San Sisto”).
Starting your visit from Porta Consulare, you enter the so-called “Terziere del Borgo”, a typical medieval village of narrow streets and houses stacked on two floors.
At the end of 'Consular Street' there is one of the most important religious buildings of the city, the 11th century Church of Santa Maria Maggiore. According to historical sources the church belonged to the monks of 'Camaldoli' in 1085. It became "Collegiate" in 1187 and it was completed in 1287, but was then extended in 1644 by Master Belardino using ancient materials, eg. with some Romanesque friezes which were embedded in the Portal. The Church is important from an artistic point of view for the many paintings it contains, such as Pinturicchio's (1454-1513) frescoes in the Baglioni Chapel, a work of great value, in which Pinturicchio painted scenes of the “Annunciation”; "Adoration of the Shepherds", “Dispute of Jesus with the Doctors”, and even a self-portrait (below). In the four vaults he painted the four Sibille (Tiburtina, Eritrea, European and Samia), sitting on a throne between two tombstones, on which you can read a few sentences taken from Sacred Scripture. In the side chapels, there are two frescoes by Perugino (1450-1523).
The Art Gallery is situated in the Palace of Canons of the Collegiate, where there are paintings and frescoes, sculptures and works of fine jewellery. Among the most important works is a polychrome wood sculpture, the "Madonna Enthroned", created between the 12th and 13th centuries, the oldest in the collection. In the Frescoes Hall stands the “Madonna and Child with Saint Jerome and Saint Bernardino”, attributed to Andrea d'Assisi (1480-1521), a pupil of Pinturicchio, active in Spello in the sixteenth century. Worth mentioning are also the "Christ Crucified between the Virgin and Saints Francis, John the Evangelist and Bishop Crispolto", by Niccolò di Liberatore, called the “Alunno” (1430-1502), and the “Madonna and Child”, attributed to Pinturicchio.
Nearby, we can visit the Church of San Andrea, altered over the centuries, but remarkable for its Romanesque style portal and for the presence in the apse of the main altar of some frescoes by the Umbrian school and a painting by Pinturicchio.
In the Piazza della Repubblica, rich in many interesting buildings, the Municipal Palace (XIII century), now seat of the Archaeological Museum, is worthy of special mention. It preserves fragments of the Roman Theatre and epigraphic monuments such as the document in which Constantine gave to Spello the right to erect a temple to the "Gens Flavia.
In Piazza Umberto I there is the Church of San Lorenzo, dating from the twelfth century, but altered in the sixteenth century. It is divided into three naves with massive pillars; one on the right end with an altar and it lodges three chapels, the first of which is dedicated to the “Virgin Mary Crowned”. Following on there is the Sacrament Chapel, by Filippo Neri da Foligno, who built it in 1789 containing a tabernacle by Flaminio Vacca (1538-1605), once on the main altar. On the left wall of this chapel is a door from which we enter the Chapel of the Trinity. The Church is very rich in frescoes, and in particular we mention those by Bartolomeo da Miranda [active 1435 to 1475] ("The Mystical Marriage of Saint Catherine"), a "San Bernardino", attributed to Tiberio d'Assisi (1470-1524), and “St. Laurent and two angels” (early XVI cent.) by Andrea Camassei da Bevagna (1602-1649).
Near the street of Augustus Arch we can see the remains of the gateway Porta Romana. At the end of street are the Church and Convent of Santa Maria di Vallegloria (XIV century). The Church has several elements in Gothic style and contains some frescoes by Ascensidonio Sporta (1557-1646), citizen of Bevagna, a typical Mannerist painter.
Going along the "Way of the Roman Arch," we are moving into the upper part of the city, called the "Rocca", which was once a medieval fortress of which some towers remain. The area is now occupied by the Capuchin Monastery, which includes the ancient Church of San Severino, with the façade in Romanesque style. Following the walls of fortress, along Via Torre del Belvedere, Via San Agostino and Via delle Mura Vecchie, we meet the monumental Venus Gate, with an Arch to three barrel-vaults, inserted into an architectural structure divided by pilasters and cornices, alongside two powerful towers that make a strong visual impact and were constructed perhaps before the time of Frederick II of Swabia (others suggest they were built later, under Cardinal Albornoz (1310-1367)).
From the Venus Gate you reach the ruins of the Roman Amphitheatre (first century AD) and the Porta Urbica, another of the entrances to the Roman city. Nearby is the interesting Church of San Claudio, an example of Romanesque architecture, built, they say, on an ancient temple dedicated to the god Saturn. According to the “Annals” of Camaldoli it belonged to the order of Camaldoli from 1025 and it is a real "rustic" church , with a very attractive façade which features a large rose window, which is not perpendicular to the portal - it is perhaps the asymmetry that is the fundamental characteristic of this church, because the phenomenon is also evident inside. It’s very likely that the asymmetry has been "designed", and probably it should have some symbolic meaning perhaps the "inversion" of something else, perhaps of paganism. In fact, inside, if you look carefully at the altar you can see that it consists of a pillar, on which there is the cover, but "inverted", of a Roman sarcophagus. Perhaps the church refers to the “overthrow of paganism” by Christianity. Inside there are also some frescoes by unknown artists, of the late fourteenth century.
Worth mentioning, finally, is the Church of St. Jerome, with an adjoining monastery, a complex built in 1472 under Braccio Baglioni (1419-1479), with a rectangular portico supported by Ionic columns and decorated with frescoes dating from the sixteenth century. Among them stands a “St. Francis receiving the stigmata”, by Pier Antonio Mezzastri. Inside there are a ciborium and a wooden crucifix, of the sixteenth century. In the choir is a fresco ("The Marriage of Maria"), a work by the school of Pinturicchio. The complex of St. Jerome stands in a very beautiful setting, in the area near Mount Subasio - here you have easy access to the surroundings of Spello and a very significant number of farms where you can taste some traditional dishes such as the "fried eggs with truffles," "fried wild boar," “red potatoes of Colfiorito”, sipping hills wine. A perfect end to your explorations.
See also history of Spello