The historic residence Ada e Sabo is located in the heart of the city of Cortona and from its windows you can see all aspects of a small community
which is a sort of “ideal city”: the political, military, religious, economic, cultural and the artistic power.
The fortified walls and towers, in particular the powerful tower of the Town Hall Palace, express the power of the Government of the Free Municipality and of the
Signoria of the Casali.
The many beautiful churches and bell towers are an expression of the religiosity and spirituality of the people of Cortona.
The wide esplanade of the great central squares, where once there was the Roman Forum, are still today the seat of trade and economy; the local Bank is indeed
located in the beautiful Cristofanello Palace.
The majestic Casali Palace, which is the seat of both the Etruscan Academy and the Archaeological Museum, and the beautiful Signorelli Theatre are the core of
Culture and Arts.
During your stay in Cortona it is possible to visit the historic center with its Nazionale Street, known as 'Rugapiana' (the name Ruga means 'street',
and piana means that it is the only street being not uphill), and its countless alleys from where you can get a glimpse of its historic buildings. In the
center, you can also walk through and admire the three main squares: the Republic, Signorelli and Duomo squares; moreover, worthy of a visit are the marvelous
cloister of Saint Augustine, the Clock Tower, Casali Palace with its courtyard and the Etruscan Academy Museum (where an Etruscan chandelier stands out among the
archaeological findings), the Signorelli Theatre, Captain’s Palace, Rinfrena Street and Iannelli Lane, the Diocesan Museum (a rich picture gallery with the
extraordinary Annunciation by Beato Angelico), Porta Colonia, the Church of Saint Dominic with its impressive Polyptych by Lorenzo di Niccolò.
On the upper part of the town, Poggio Medievale, you can find the Church of Saint Francis, Berrettini’s house, the Church of Saint Christopher, Pozzo Tondo’s
Square, the Church of Saint Nicholas with Signorelli’s amazing Deposition of Christ, Porta Montanina, the Church and Convent of Saint Clare, the Church of
Saint Mark and the Monastery of the Holy Trinity. Your experience continues with a 800 meters long stroll in Parterre park, the historic nineteenth-century gardens
embellished with a fountain and with a long, flat and tree-lined avenue, whose lindens are very scented especially in June. From here you can go past the gardens and
reach the Torreone, the Sanctuary of Saint Margaret, the Fortress of Girifalco with an all-round view of the valley, and go down the Via Crucis, retracing the
aediculae with mosaics by Severini, to return to the historic center in Garibaldi Square (also called 'Carbonaia').
Just outside Cortona it is possible to visit the impressive Hermitage of the Celle, a mystical place of prayer built in the rocks next to a river bed,
where Saint Francis of Assisi used to come for spiritual retreat: it is currently inhabited by Cappuccini Friars; you can also admire the beautiful Palazzone, a
Renaissance villa which belonged to Cardinal Silvio Passerini, that is currently home to the Pisa High School. The area is also rich of archaeological sites from
the Etruscan-Roman period such as the Tumolo del Sodo, the Roman Villa of Ossaia and the 2nd-century BC Tanella of Pythagoras.
The tradition of Cortona is rich in mythography which confers it great antiquity and resonance. Mythography’s tradition makes Cortona the mother of Troy
and the grandmother of Rome. In fact, the legend tells that Dardanus left from Cortona to go and found the city of Troy.
Walking along the Etruscan walls it is possible to admire the monumental Porta Bifora, located at the end of Ghibellina Street, and Porta Montanina, located on the
upper part of the city overlooking the majestic Church of Santa Maria Nuova. An anecdote about the curse of Porta Bifora says that in 1258 the ghibelline
faction prevailed in Cortona and was at war with the city of Arezzo, where the guelph faction dominated. One night thanks to a traitor, Porta Bacarelli (now
Porta Bifora) was opened, thus allowing the Arezzo army to sack it. It was not until 1261 that the inhabitants of Cortona, thanks to the help of the Ghibellines
from Siena, returned and won back Cortona. Due to this, Porta Bifora was cursed and bricked up; it was opened again only in the 1990s.
Luca Signorelli, Pietro Berrettini, Bartolomeo della Gatta, Giorgio Vasari, Alessandro Allori and Andrea Commodi are the main artists who worked in
Cortona.
