Tolentino
Tolentino is situated in the heartland of the southern-central Marche and is a thriving medieval town set in rolling hills. It is surrounded by a long stretch of thirteenth-century walls. The handsome Basilica of St Nicholas of Tolentino has a valuable portal, a mix of Gothic flamboyant and early Renaissance style. The Augustinian cloister dates […]
La Rancia Castle
The unsusual altitude of just 178 metres above sea level makes you wonder wheter the castle of La Rancia was really meant to be a monumental architectural construction with military purposes, given that castles were traditionally built much higher so as to both figuratively impose power from above and better control the surroundings. This fortified […]
Basilica of Saint Nicholas of Tolentino
The Basilica of Saint Nicholas of Tolentino is one of the most important sanctuaries of central Italy. St. Nicholas of Tolentino (1245-1305) was an Augustinian friar, miracle worker and great preacher. He lived in the convent of the Hermit Friars of St. Augustine in the city, from 1275 until his death. He reached such a high notoriety […]
Abbey of Santa Maria di Chiaravalle in Fiastra
The Abbey of Santa Maria di Chiaravalle of Fiastra is one of Italy’s best preserved examples of Cistercian architecture. The Cistercian monks arrived here in 1142. The construction of the abbey began a year after their arrival in the area. The church has three naves, pointed vaults with cruciform pillars crowned with Romanesque capitals; it […]
Fiastra Lake
This lake is the largest hydroelectric reservoir of The Marches. It lies in a valley surrounded by beautiful hills at the foothills of the Sibillini Mountains, 685 metres a.s.l. The deep blue and the cleanliness of its waters make it a viable alternative to the crowded coastal beaches. In its main beach of San Lorenzo […]
Macerata and the Sferisterio
Macerata is known across the world for its annual open-air opera festival, taking place in its open-air Arena Sferisterio – a neo-classical arena erected by private subscription in the 1820’s. Its centre was almost entirely built between the 16th and 19th centuries. The Renaissance two-tiered arcades of the Loggia dei Mercanti on central Piazza della Liberta’ […]
Urbisaglia – Roman Amphitheatre
Urbisaglia was a large and important town in the Piceno area; it later became a Roman colony. Near to this small town lie the remains of the Roman Urbs Salvia, with the amphitheatre built in the 2nd century AD and the theatre , one of the region’s most conspicuous Roman ruins, that still retains earliest decoration. […]
San Severino Marche
San Severino Marche is located on the Montenero hill, in the Potenza valley. It has medieval monuments, most of which were built during the years of independence of the municipality and during the Smeducci Seigniory. Many Gothic churches in the city and territory as well as the works left by the local school of painting that […]
Loreto and the Holy House
The town of Loreto developed around the famous Basilica that contains the “Santa Casa” (the Holy House of Nazareth) where, according to tradition, the Virgin Mary was born, lived and received the announcement of the miraculous birth of Jesus. Tradition says that, when in 1291 the Muslims finally expelled the Christians from Jerusalem and then tried to regain Nazareth, […]
Recanati, Giacomo Leopardi’s birthplace.
Recanati is a remarkably hill town, just inland from the Adriatic Sea. It is situated on a ridge between the valleys of the Potenza and the Musone rivers, with a wonderful view that stretches from the Sibillini Mountains to the Adriatic Sea. It’s close to the heart of many Italians as the birthplace of one […]