Urbino

Executive summary by darmansjah

Urbino is a walled city in the Marche region of Italy, south-west of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially under the patronage of Federico da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino from 1444 to 1482. The town, nestled on a high sloping hillside, retains much of its picturesque medieval aspect, only slightly marred by the large car parks below the town. It hosts the University of Urbino, founded in 1506, and is the seat of the Archbishop of Urbino. Its best-known architectural piece is the Palazzo Ducale, rebuilt by Luciano Laurana.

The main attraction of Urbino is the Palazzo Ducale, begun in the second half of the 15th century by Federico II da Montefeltro. It houses the Galleria Nazionale delle Marche, one of the most important collections of Renaissance paintings in the world.

Other buildings include Palazzo Albani (17th century), Palazzo Odasi and Palazzo Passionei.

The Albornoz Fortress (known locally as La Fortezza), built by the eponymous Papal legate in the 14th century.

In 1507-1511, when the Della Rovere added a new series of walls to the city, the rock was enclosed in them. It is now a public park.

Raphael's house and monument (1897).

Churches

The Duomo di Urbino (cathedral) is a church founded in 1021 over a 6th-century religious edifice. The 12th century plan was turned 90 degrees from the current one, which is a new construction also started by Federico II and commissioned to Francesco di Giorgio Martini, author of the Ducal Palace. Finished only in 1604, the Duomo had a simple plan with a nave and two aisles, and was destroyed by an earthquake in 1789. The church was again rebuilt by the Roman architect Giuseppe Valadier, the works lasting until 1801. The new church has a typical neo-classicist appearance, with a majestic dome. It houses a San Sebastian from 1557, an Assumption by Carlo Maratta (1701) and the famous Last Supper by Federico Barocci (1603–1608).

The church of San Giovanni Battista, with frescoes by Lorenzo Salimbeni da Sanseverino

Sant'Agostino, built in Romanesque style in the 13th century, but largely modified in the following centuries. 

The façade has a late-14th century almond portal in Gothic-Romanesuqe style, while the interior is greatly decorated. It houses a precious carved choir from the 16th century, manufactured for the marriage of Costanzo Sforza and Camilla of Aragona. The bell tower is from the 15th century.

San Francesco (14th century), originally a Gothic-Romanesque edifice of which an 18th-century restoration has left only the portico and the bell tower. The interior has a nave and two aisles, and houses the Pardon of St. Francis, a 15th-century work by Barocci.

The Oratory of San Giuseppe (early 16th century), composed of two chapels: one of which contains a 16th-century presepio or Nativity scene by Federico Brandani, the stucco figures are lifesize and highly naturalistic.

Outside the city is the Church of San Bernardino, housing the tombs of the Dukes of Urbino.