Urbino in
Italy
Urbino is a pinnacle of
Renaissance art and architecture. It is a hill town in the Marche region
of central Italy that achieved cultural importance for a short period and
then fell back into obscurity, which had the happy effect of preserving
its harmonious sixteenth-century appearance. The centre of the city is a
UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Palazzo Ducale dominates the city. It provided a standard for all
Renaissance palaces that followed it and is still a worthy setting for
one of the greatest collections of Renaissance paintings in the world,
the Galleria Nazionale delle Marche. It is appropriate that the duke who
built it was the legendary condottiere (aristocratic mercenary
soldier), Federico II da Montefeltro, honored throughout Europe as a
diplomat and patron of art and literature. His court attracted
outstanding humanist scholars and artists, such as Piero della Francesca,
whose Flagellation of Christ is one of the gallery's highlights.
The scale of the palace is not obvious from the city, its 500 or so rooms
are human in scale and the duke's studiolo is a masterpiece of
trompe-l'eil in inlaid wood. There is a warren of tunnels and caves
under the palace, which used to house the servants' quarters, kitchens,
laundries and stables.
The city was also home to the painter Raphael and his family home is now
a museum. On one wall there is a fresco that has been attributed to him.
Raphael even influenced the majolica pottery for which Urbino is still
known 500 years later.
Urbino remains a favorite with many visitors because of its fairytale
skyline and the harmonious blend of the medieval cityscape and the
Renaissance palace, which was designed to complement its surroundings,
not to dominate them. You could also visit the Oratorio di San Giovanni
Battista e San Giuseppe and the Church of San Bernardino. The best time
to visit Urbino is during the flower festival in May or the Jazz festival
in June.
