FLOWERS AND TOWERS

Meet your private guide and driver at your accommodation and step into a picture postcard of medieval Umbria on this full-day excursion to Spello and Bevagna.

Perched on the southern slopes of Mount Subasio, Spello is a pretty little town with a remarkable artistic and cultural heritage. A jumble of honey-hued stone buildings with weathered wooden doors and terracotta roof tiles huddles on a hillside, enclosed by walls from the Augustan age. Five ancient Roman gates welcome visitors to the old centre, beckoning them in to explore its magical maze of alleys adorned with blooming balconies and hanging baskets. On the day of Corpus Christi additional splashes of colour are provided by the marvellous flower carpets created for the Infiorata Festival, Spello’s most famous religious celebration. Every year, on the ninth Sunday after Easter, green-fingered citizens try to outdo each other by assembling leaves and petals in elaborate compositions, turning the streets into a riot of hues and scents.

Your first stop is the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, housing Spello’s most prized jewel. Here Pinturicchio, one of the greatest artists of the Renaissance, decorated the Baglioni Chapel in 1501 with precious frescoes featuring Scenes from the Life of the Virgin Mary and Christ’s Childhood. Your guide will point out features of particular significance and explain how the painter’s skilful use of a brilliant palette, his realistic representation of space, perspective and light and painstaking attention to detail have earned this cycle its rightful place among the masterpieces of the history of Italian art. Just a few steps away, inside the Church of Sant’Andrea you may admire another of Pinturicchio’s works, the splendid 1508 panel painting portraying a Madonna enthroned with Saints. From here a short walk will take you to the monumental Porta Venere gate and Towers of Properzio where you will turn the clock back to the 1st century BC and hear about Spello’s early beginnings as a prosperous Roman colony. Not to be missed are also Piazza Comunale, dominated by the elegant 13th century town hall, and the Belvedere, a panoramic terrace from which you will take in sweeping views of the verdant Umbrian landscape.

After some free time for lunch, a 15-minute drive will bring you to the lovely town of Bevagna. Situated in the fertile Foligno plain, close by the River Timia, Bevagna boasts a beautifully preserved medieval historic centre dotted with handsome palazzi and churches. Originally an Etruscan settlement, the town was later conquered by the Romans and evidence of their influence can still be perceived today. Columns and brickwork of a 2nd century AD temple have been incorporated into the walls of the Church of the Madonna della Neve, while the outline of a 1st century AD Roman theatre is still discernible in the shape of a complex of houses, whose layout retraces the oval form of foundations and masonry from an earlier age.

Bevagna’s fortunes waxed in the Middle Ages when a flourishing economy, supported by a thriving crafts scene, led to the creation of the buildings we can admire today. The original architecture and town walls have survived over the centuries offering visitors the chance to turn back the wheels of time and relive the olden days of lords and dames.

Make your way through the quaint alleys of Bevagna and reach the small but delightful Piazza Silvestri, the heart of the town’s religious and political life for over seven hundred years. Here you will admire the Gothic-style Palazzo dei Consoli and three churches dedicated to San Michele, San Silvestro and San Domenico that together make up one of the finest corners of Umbria. A bit further north up the main street look out for the 13th century Church of San Francesco, built on the site of a long lost Roman temple. Inside you can admire 16th century frescoes and the stone on which Saint Francis is believed to have stood as he preached to the birds.

Those lucky enough to visit Umbria in late June will have the opportunity to experience Bevagna in full medieval garb. Every year, for ten days, during the Mercato delle Gaite folkloristic event, the citizens work together to set up a historic re-enactment of 12th and 13th century lifestyles, transforming the town’s streets and squares into an open air stage. As you saunter through the alleys strewn with hay and decked with colourful workshops and food stands, you’ll encounter locals dressed in period costumes, enthusiastically reviving ancient trades such as silk spinning, candle making, pottery and metal working.

After the tour your private chauffeur will drive you back to your accommodation.