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Assisi Italy stretches out on the slopes of the
Mount Subasio, above
the plain where the Topino and
Chiascio rivers flow. Although it can boast Roman origins, its
present-day appearance, because of the buildings and also the urban
structure, is surely due to the city's development during the Middle
Ages. Assisi's oldest nucleus, which is protected by a
defensive apparatus made up of eight fortified entrance portals and
a long belt of town walls,
which are still perfectly preserved, is
topped by two castles on peak of the mountain: the Major
Castle, reconstructed by the Cardinal Albornoz in
1367 and the Minor Castle. Apart from religious buildings too
important to not be considered solely the heritage of Assisi
such as the basilica
of
St.Francis,
the tourist can also visit the churches of St.
Clare and St. Peter. |
Assisi Italy: Map of the old town center
Click
to enlarge
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| The Cathedral,
dedicated to the Patron Saint St. Rufino, vaunts a splendid and
unaltered facade with sculptures and reliefs; the interior, however,
has undergone much reconstruction during the centuries which have
distorted the original project dating back to the 13th century. On
the Town Square situated on the ancient Forum, you will find the
Priors' Palace (1337), the Palace of the People's Captain (12th
century) and the temple of
Minerva, built during the augustean
period with pronaos, columms and corinthian capitals
which are still intact. Nearby, places which are connected with the
life of St. Francis can be visited, sich as the Eremitage
of the Prisons, immersed in a thick wood of oaks and
ilex on the slopes of the Subasio Mountain, and the
convent of St.
Damian, which was built up around the oratory were,
according to tradition, the Cross spoke to the Saint. Finally, in
the plain, the impressive basilica of St. Mary of the Angels was
built according to the plans of Alessi between 1569 and 1679 to
protect the Porziuncola
Chapel, which was the first simple
meeting-place of the Francescan brotherhood. All those who have the
good luck of visiting this splendid town have to agree with who says
that the beauty of town goes beyond a short, and necessarily
incomplete list of works of art more or less extraordinary, but is
however to be found in the atmosphere of places which the story and
the faith of the Saint have rendered unique all over the world.
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