UP TO YOUR ELBOWS

Meet your private guide and chauffeur at your accommodation and set off to discover a bustling port city and an intriguing hilltop town.

Ancona, the capital of Le Marche, sits on the Adriatic coast gazing out towards Croatia. While all too often overlooked by visitors to the region in favour of the seaside resorts and lovely beaches of Conero, Ancona preserves its own share of attractions and to bypass it would mean to miss a significant portion of Le Marche’s treasures. The city’s centro storico, punctuated with a fine collection of palazzi, churches and archaeological ruins, retains traces of Ancona’s glorious 2,000-year-old history.

Founded in 387 BC by Greek colonists from Syracuse who chose this site for its favourable position and the elbow-shaped conformation of its bay – indeed the city derives its name from the Greek term Ankon, meaning elbow – Ancona thrived under Roman rule when its fortunes as a harbour and trade centre began to prosper. Remains of an ancient Roman amphitheatre and the 115 AD Trajan arch still stand as proof of Ancona’s early promising beginnings.

Your tour starts by the medieval Cathedral of San Ciriaco, an unequalled feat of Romanesque architecture in Le Marche. Panoramically perched atop a hill from where you can enjoy sweeping views of the sea and the city below, the church stands on the site of a long lost temple dedicated to the goddess Venus. Its facade, with the iconic red marble lions and splendid prothyrum, adorns many a postcard but San Ciriaco’s interior is no less remarkable. Twelfth century plutei, Byzantine capitals, a miraculous image of the Madonna and what are believed to be the relics of the city’s patron saints are among the church’s highlights. From here follow your guide on a trail that will lead you from Colle Guasco down to the waterfront, pausing to admire Ancona’s major landmarks. You will certainly stop in Piazza del Plebiscito, surrounded by a collage of historic buildings, including the Palazzo del Governo with its distinctive clock tower and the Church of San Domenico, home to a Crucifixion by Renaissance master Titian. Nearby, your guide will point out the Fountain of the Thirteen Spouts designed in the 1500s by Pellegrino Tibaldi and the 15th century Loggia dei Mercanti, a fabulous example of Gothic-Venetian architecture. Not to be missed are also the Romanesque-style Church of Santa Maria della Piazza and the Mole Vanvitelliana, built on an artificial island in the 18th century as a lazaretto and warehouse.

After some free time for lunch a 30-minute drive will bring you to Osimo, whose very ancient origins date back to the 9th century BC when the Piceni tribe first settled in the area. It later became a Roman colony and evidence of this phase can still be perceived today. Remains of city walls and traces of the original urban layout still live on as reminders of what was once the ancient town of Auximum. Your guide will show you around Piazza del Comune, dominated by the elegant town hall, and inside the medieval Cathedral of San Leopardo, housing the relics of Osimo’s first martyrs. Worthy of note is also the Basilica of San Giuseppe da Copertino, which displays Antonio Solario’s Madonna and Saints and a Crucifixion by Francesco Solimena.

But what draws visitors to Osimo are the famous Grotte del Cantinone, a fascinating labyrinth of man-made corridors carved out of sandstone snaking beneath the town. Archaeologists believe that some 2,500 years ago, the ancient Piceni began to excavate the hill and create underground tunnels which were extended over time and used for different purposes such as safe hideaways, preserving food and extracting building material. Franciscan monks used to retreat here to pray far from the hustle and bustle of the city above. They are the authors of the bas-reliefs, featuring religious symbols and saints, that lend a mysterious, secret aura to these subterranean passageways.

After the tour rejoin your driver and return to your accommodation.