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8:14 from Termini Everyday a train leaves Termini: first stop: Orte; second stop Narni; third stop Terni; fourth stop Spoleto; fifth stop Trevi; sixth stop ...  Foligno - an excursion to Montefalco(detail of the Cathedral of Foligno)
Montefalco is known as Ringhiera dell'Umbria (Umbria's balustrade/balcony) owing to its commanding position at the top of a hill.
The town is still surrounded by walls built in the XIIIth century to protect two monasteries located outside an earlier enclosure. Montefalco was then a possession of the Bishop of Spoleto. In 1383 it was given to the Trinci, the lords of Foligno.
S. Agostino is a large church similar to those of Foligno and it is decorated by many XVth century frescoes.
Tutte le strade portano a Roma (all roads lead to Rome): this saying also applies to the main square of Montefalco which is located at the very top of the hill. It is a nice place to sit while tasting the local wines at one of the many enoteca (literally wine libraries). Some of the buildings show Renaissance features.
Benozzo Gozzoli who is best known for his elegant and very coloured frescoes at Palazzo Medici in Florence (external link) spent two years (1450-52) in Montefalco, where he decorated the church and the monastery of S. Francesco. The two buildings are now a museum which also displays paintings coming from other churches of the region. S. Maria di Piazza, the small oratory in the main square, has a nicely decorated altar (you may wish to see Bill Thayer's page on this oratory - external link).
S. Illuminata is a small Renaissance church, with a design which is unusual in Umbria, most likely because the monastic community who built it came from northern Italy.
A walk along the walls of Montefalco offers great views over the other towns of the Umbrian valley.
Return to Foligno or move ahead to Spello. 
1864 clickable map of Umbria |
