The Museum opened in 1991 and was extended and renovated in 2000. It currently consists of twelve rooms located on two floors, adjacent to the city’s cathedral, in Piazza Gabriotti.

Room I contains one of the most important archaeological finds in recent centuries: the tesoro di Canoscio (treasure of Canoscio). It is a collection of 25 objects used for the Eucharistic liturgy, found by chance in 1935 at the Canoscio sanctuary near Città di Castello during ploughing work. As well as containing a large number of objects (chalices, pyxides, crucibles, patens, plates and spoons), the collection is very important because it is a unique example of sacred archaeology dating back to the 5^th-6^th century.

Sala II displays two jewellery masterpieces: the Paliotto, a hanging in embossed silver that was donated to the city in 1142 by Pope Celestino II – whose family was from Città di Castello – to decorate the Cathedral’s altar, and the Riccio di Pastorale (Shepherd’s Crook), attributed to the Siena-born goldsmith Goro di Gregorio. It is attributed to the 14^th century and is also made of embossed silver with figures of enamelled and translucent saints.

Sala III contains a dozen display cases containing liturgical objects that illustrate the historical evolution of the Christian liturgy from the 8^th to the 19^th century.

Finally, in the beautiful Salone Gotico, a gallery brings together local artists such as Giovanni Battista and Francesco da Tiferno and two masterpieces of Italian painting: Cristo in Gloria (Christ in Glory), oil on wood, created by Rosso Fiorentino between 1528-30 and Madonna col Bambino e San Giovannino (Madonna with Child and Saint Giovannino), tempera on wood, painted by Pinturicchio at the end of the 15^th century.

The second floor holds extremely important archival documents: a Parchment by Emperor Federico Barbarossa and an 11^th-century Parchment Codex containing the Rule of St. Augustine. The exhibition concludes with the funeral plaque of Alessandro Vitelli, made of lead, dated 1554.

It is useful to know that, thanks to the ECCLESIA CARD project, the purchase of a ticket for one of the museums provides access to all the diocesan museums in Umbria at a discounted price.

Next to the small square in San Giovanni in Campo, along the Largo Monsignor Muzzi, stands the imposing form of Chiesa di San Domenico, the largest church in Città di Castello.

The Dominicans built the church between 1399 and 1424 on the site of an earlier small church. The structure is based on a single nave and has a four-sided bell tower on the right side. The external facade remained unfinished.

The presbytery is embellished by a precious inlaid wooden choir carved in 1435 by the Florentine master Manno di Benincasa, known as Manno dei Cori.

Two important works of art were once conserved inside the church: “The Crucifix” by Raphael (1503), commissioned by the Gavari family and now displayed at the National Gallery in London and the “Martirio di San Sebastiano” (Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian) by Luca Signorelli (1498), commissioned by the Brozzi family and transferred to the Pinacoteca Comunale (Municipal gallery) at Palazzo Vitelli alla Cannoniera.

Despite this major loss, the Basilica still preserves important 15^th-century frescoes and an urn with the ashes of the Beata Margherita [Blessed Margaret], (1298-1320), a Dominican tertiary called La Cieca della Metola, are conserved in the main altar upon transfer from their  original home. The decorative frescoes in the cloister adjacent to the church are dedicated to her and the story of the miracles in her life.

Concluded between 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.

What can now be seen of this church, consecrated in 1291, is the result of numerous successive modifications. The original Gothic structure has been preserved: a Latin cross plan with a single nave, crowned by an apse with three polygonal chapels. The interior decoration, on the other hand, was completely redesigned in the Baroque style between 1707, 1718 and 1727. The large entrance portal was also added in 1731, when the original Gothic portal was dismantled to build an altar inside the church.

The building is located in Via Albizzini (a short distance from Palazzo Albizzini and Palazzo Vitelli in Sant’Egidio) and in the bottom left corner houses the beautiful Cappella Vitelli, built to a design drawn up by Vasari in 1563. The large table depicting “L’incoronazione della Vergine” (The coronation of the Virgin), is attributable to the same year and the same author, and was commissioned by Gentilina Della Staffa Vitelli, mother of Paolo and Chiappino, who were buried in the chapel with Nicolò Vitelli also known as the ‘Father of the Homeland’ (“Padre della Patria”).

Vasari’s masterpiece is safeguarded by a majestic wrought iron gate, built in 1567 by a native of Città di Castello, the master craftsman Pietro Ercolani.

On the altar dedicated to San Giuseppe stands a painting called “Lo Sposalizio della Vergine” (The Marriage of the Virgin), (1504), a copy of the famous work by Raphael. The original was kept in Città di Castello until it was transferred to the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan in 1805.

Another very important work that was found in the church of S. Francesco was “L’adorazione dei pastori” (The Adoration of the Shepherds), painted by Luca Signorelli in 1496 and now on display at the National Gallery in London.

Cultivation of tobacco seems to have begun spreading throughout Umbria in the 16^th century. Later, the small Republic of Cospaia, a free-trade area between the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Papal State, became a thriving hub for smuggling and remained so until the 1970s. In the post-WWII period, the cultivation of tropical tobacco produced in the area became no longer profitable and was slowly abandoned, with the consequent neglect of the large warehouses of the Fattoria Autonoma Tabacchi in Città di Castello, which had been used for drying the leaves.

In 1978, the artist Alberto Burri secured and started to use the warehouses as a workshop for the creation of large-scale artworks. Born in Città di Castello in 1915, Burri was a doctor by profession and began to devote himself to art during WWII. His work is considered part of the informal art movement, characterized by the use of innovative materials and massive dimensions (one of his most famous works, “Il Cretto” of Gibellina Vecchia in Sicily, is a huge expanse of white concrete that covers the ruins of the earthquake of 1968).

On several occasions during his life (he died in Nice in 1995), Burri donated his works to his hometown, collaborating with the Palazzo Albizzini Foundation, which acquired the entire complex in 1989 and launched a structured project of reclamation and renovation. The large pavilions, completely painted in black according to the artist’s wishes, display as many as 128 large-scale works – some are even positioned on the lawn outside the building – divided and organized in the exhibition spaces according to cycles designed by Burri himself: Viaggio (1979), Orsanmichele (1980), Sestante (1982), Rosso e Nero (1983-84), T Cellotex (1975-84), Annotarsi (1985-87), Non ama il Nero (1988), Grandi Neri (1988- 90), Metamorfotex (1991), and Il Nero e l’Oro (1992-93).

The exhibition at the ‘Ex Seccatoi del Tabacco’ (former tobacco-drying plant) was inaugurated in 1990 with an area of some 7,500 square metres, housing the artist’s works produced between the years 1970 and 1993.

The remaining works, about 130 pieces made by Burri between 1948 and 1989, are at another exhibition location at Palazzo Albizzini, in Via Albizzini, not far from Palazzo Vitelli a Sant’Egidio.

Not far from the Cathedral, overlooking Piazza Gabriotti, stands one of the most beautiful and important Palazzi in Umbria. The Palazzo dei Priori (or ‘Comunale’) was built between 1322 and 1338 by the architect Angelo da Orvieto, as evidenced by a weathered and almost illegible inscription on the entrance lintel. In the same period, the architect was engaged in the construction of two other important buildings: the Palazzo dei Consoli in Gubbio and Palazzo del Podestà in Città di Castello.

Nowadays, Palazzo dei Priori is the Town Hall and the 16^th-century staircase leads to the ‘Sala del Consiglio comunale’ with its fragments of frescoes and ancient Roman epigraphs.

The City’s coat of arms is carved on the lunette of the main door and the precious rustic ashlar facade recalls the elegant Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. Unfortunately, the work was never completed and is still unfinished today, without a bell tower, which is, however, substituted by the nearby Torre Civica.

Also called Torre del Vescovo due to its position close to the bishop’s residence, the Torre di Città di Castello dates back to the 14^th century and is the true emblem of the city. Numerous coats of arms are still visible on the facade, as are traces of the small roof that protected the fresco depicting “Madonna col bambino tra I Santi Paolo e Girolamo” (Madonna and Child between Saints Paul and Jerome) by Luca Signorelli. Created in 1474, the fresco suffered damage on numerous occasions due to the weather and earthquakes, so it was definitively removed in 1940 and preserved (only in part) in the Pinacoteca Comunale. In 1937, the Tower was even equipped with the first public clock and today it still provides the perfect place to enjoy a breath-taking view of the city and the surrounding area. From the top, one can admire the entire historic city centre, Montesca hill and the entire Tiber valley.

The ‘duomo’ or cathedral of Città di Castello has stood in Piazza Gabriotti, in the city centre, since the 11^th century. According to tradition, the Romanesque church was built on the ruins of a former pagan temple and was consecrated three times during its long existence, first to San Lorenzo and then later to the patron saints of the city, Florido and Amanzio.

The building in its current form is the result of successive modifications. The first were carried out in 1356, then further renovations were made between the 15^th and the 16^th centuries under the direction of Elia di Bartolomeo.

The facade, which was left unfinished, dates back to between 1632 – 1646 and was designed by Francesco Lazzari. The Cathedral still preserves traces of its ancient origins: the cylindrical bell tower, in the Ravenna style, dating back to Roman times, and the left portal, decorated with twisted columns can be dated back to the Gothic period.

The imposing entrance stairway is more recent, attributable to the 18^th century.

The structure is based on the Latin cross plan, with a single nave and side chapels that contain some noteworthy works of art: the chapel of S. Paolo displays “La caduta del Santo sulla via di

Damasco” (The fall of the Saint on the road to Damascus), painted by Niccolò Circignani, otherwise known as Pomarancio, at the end of the 16^th century, and the “Transfigurazione” (Transfiguration) by Rosso Fiorentino (1530).

The presbytery is decorated with a beautiful, inlaid wooden choir carved in the mid-16^th century. A visit to the Cathedral should be rounded off with a viewing of the crypt below, the ‘Duomo Inferiore’, which is accessible through a side staircase, where an ancient stone sarcophagus still holds the relics of the Cathedral’s patron saints.

Slightly offset from the main square where the city’s other public buildings are located, the Palazzo del Podestà stands in Piazza Matteotti and was built by Angelo da Orvieto, a few years after the construction of the Palazzo dei Priori. The building was commissioned by the Tarlati family from Pietramala who ruled Città di Castello between 1324 and 1335, but it was completely finished in 1368 when, according to what can be read in the Annals, the Municipal authorities rented five of the nine shops below it.

Above the portals of some of these shops there are still lunettes decorated with the friezes and coats of arms of the Podestà family who governed the city. The architect adopted different styles when he decorated the building: above each door is a small round fully-opening window that is in turn surmounted by elegant double-lancet windows.

The northern facade was made of sandstone blocks and still retains the 14^th-century structure, while the loggia overlooking Piazza Fanti was completely rebuilt by Nicola Barbioni in the 17^th century.

The work of patronage, but also of control and domination of the city, undertaken by the Vitelli dynasty between the 15^th and 16^th centuries, is clearly evident from the large number of buildings that bear the name of this family and that embellish the streets of the city, almost as if to acknowledge and remind us of their past existence and role in the city. Therefore, when talking about Palazzo Vitelli in Città di Castello, it is always advisable to specify which of the many buildings bearing this name is being referenced. The following buildings are all a short distance from each other, each with its own peculiarities:

PALAZZO VITELLI IN PIAZZA

It is so defined because it stands in Piazza Matteotti, the centre of the city’s social life. The large building was probably started in 1487 by Camillo, Paolo and Vitellozzo Vitelli but it was completely finished just a few decades later by Alessandro, in 1546. The cornice is a later addition, built around the 18^th century, when the palazzo had already become the property of the Bufalini family.

The very sober architectural style, compared to the other Palazzi Vitelli, recalls the forms of Tuscan buildings. The building was left unfinished and is austere in its form and shapes, perhaps because it had to perform a specific function: that of warehouse and stables. The inner courtyard is in fact bordered by another building known as Palazzo Vitelli dell’Abbondanza, which in reality is the original nucleus of the entire complex, used as a warehouse for grain, hence the name ‘abbondanza’ (abundance). The stables, built above the basement, were barrel-vaulted and supported by massive pillars, while the top floor consisted of a large hall with walls bearing  frescoes in the upper section, although they are difficult to decipher now due to damage and wear.

PALAZZO VITELLI A SAN GIACOMO

Located in Via dei Vitelli, the building is currently undergoing restoration and will be used to house the Municipal Library named after Giosuè Carducci. The majestic facade has beautiful sandstone windows, while the interior still preserves the courtyard’s colonnades, the loggia on the first floor, a coffered ceiling and frescoes on the walls. The building was built in the 16^th century for Paola Rossi of San Secondo Parmense, wife of Vitello Vitelli who, after being widowed, married Alessandro, a cousin of her late husband, in 1528.

PALAZZO VITELLI A PORTA SANT’EGIDIO

The largest of the four buildings, building of this palazzo was started in 1540 by Paul II Vitelli (captain in the service of the Farnese family and Emperor Charles V), based perhaps on a design by Vasari in present day Piazza Garibaldi.

While retaining the original floorplan, the modern structure has undergone various changes due to earthquakes that have damaged several parts. The facade has a high portico with five arches, supported by pillars that were once columns, and is divided into three floors that are reminiscent of the Tuscan style. Inside, a monumental staircase leads to the large hall on the main floor, reduced in size due to the earthquake in 1686. The fresco decoration of the Hall, masterfully carried out by artists of the calibre of Fontana, Doceno and their assistants, depicts the achievements of the Vitelli family.

The palazzo overlooks an immense Italian-style garden with oak woods and a nymphaeum. It is bordered to the north-east by the ancient city walls and beautified by the “Palazzina”, an elegant, recently-restored loggia built around a medieval tower. It was decorated with frescoes by Fontana and depicts landscapes, festoons of fruit and flowers and mythological scenes.

PALAZZO VITELLI ALLA CANNONIERA

The imposing building owes its name to the cannon foundry (or depot) that previously occupied the site of the present building. It was built by Alessandro Vitelli in the Tuscan style between 1521 and 1545 on the occasion of his marriage to Paola Rossi di San Secondo Parmense, who was widowed in 1528 after the death of Vitello Vitelli, as shown on an inscription inside the residence. The beautiful, graphically-decorated facade was created by Doceno based on a design by Vasari and is accompanied by interior frescoed decoration, again by Doceno, in several rooms (the most famous being the ‘Studiolo’ (small study).

The entire complex is divided into five buildings that overlook an immense garden. Thanks to the work of the tireless antique dealer and restorer Elia Volpi, since 1912 the imposing building has housed the Pinacoteca Comunale gallery which includes, among others, works by Luca Signorelli (Martirio di S. Sebastiano – Martyrdom of St Sebastian), the only work by Raphael in the city (Gonfalone della SS. Trinità – Banner of the Holy Trinity) and a valuable terracotta artefact from the workshop of Ghirlandaio and the Della Robbia (Madonna col Bambino e sei Angeli – Madonna with Child and Six Angels).