The church of San Benedetto, is one of the most peculiar and not well known churches in Cortona. It is a “hidden jewel” of Cortona, so you can’t miss this church during your visit to Cortona. This church has got a unique shape, because it has got an elliptical plan. San Benedetto is set in a very scenic context. It has got a round façade without plaster, with exposed bricks, and from the terrace in front of the church, you could have a beautiful and stunning view on the roofs of Cortona. The building has got three big windows without the frame, and one window located over the main entrance. When you enter inside the church, you will be stunned by the richness of decorations: stucco and marble make the interior of the church of San Benedetto very evocative. The statue of “The Flogged Christ” is very interesting and amazing, it was located on the main altar, that dates back to the seventeenth century. This statute, with other statues placed in other churches in Cortona, is carried during the Easter procession of the Good Friday.

The church of San Domenico is one of the churches you can’t miss in Cortona. This church was once part of the Domincan convent of Cortona, one of the most ancient in the area, already documented in 1258. However, the early church, that was built before the actual one, dates back to 1264. The church visible nowadays was built at the end of fourteenth century, and it was consecrated in 1517 by the bishop of Cortona. The external aspect of the church is late gothic, even if some elements belong to the Renaissance period. The interior of the church is full of works of art, and it has got a central aisle, and it is covered by a wood truss ceiling. The presbytery is raised by five little steps and it has got three rectangular apse chapels; this is a characteristic feature of the Gothic church of the mendicant orders. On the greater apse chapel there is a stunning polyptych painted by Lorenzo di Nicolò in the fifteenth century and it represents the Coronation of the Virgin Mary with some Angels and Saints. The polyptych wasn’t meant for Cortona, but it was given in 1440 by Cosimo il Vecchio, to repair the non-execution by Beato Angelico of an altarpiece for the major altar. On the left apse chapel there is also a piece of art of the famous painter from Cortona Luca Signorelli.

The “Via Crucis” (Way of the Cross) is a devotional path made by Gino Severini, the famous artist from Cortona. It is a devotional route that develops along Via Santa Margherita. This path starts from Porta Berarda (the door from which Santa Margherita, the patron saint of Cortona came into the city in 1272). The Via Crucis was commissioned to Gino Severini by the bishop of Cortona, who wanted to thank Santa Margherita saving the city from the wartime destructions. He started working at the Via Crucis making drawing on the cardboards, that later he would have used as base for the mosaics of the fourteen stations. The cardboards today are kept in the Diocesan Museum. He worked on the mosaic in Rome in 1944. In 1961 these stations were completed with the big mosaic on the façade of the church of San Marco. On the mosaic there is the picture of Saint Mark the Evangelist, represented with the lion that is his biblical symbol. The stations of the Via Crucis were preceded by the fifteenth station, dedicated to Santa Margherita who prayed in front of the Cross. Severini said that he liked to represent Margherita, as a truly Saint from Cortona and of people from Cortona. In fact, on the mosaic of the Saint there is the silhouette of the city, with the roofs of the houses, the doors, the churches, the towers, the domes, the sanctuary nestled on the slope of the hill and the fortress of Girifalco. The scenes of the Via Crucis are simple, and they focus on the main characters. The style of the paintings is interpreted cubism. On the mosaics there are some golden leaves that create a surprising effect of bright punctuation. The stations follow along all the avenue, with the mosaics put under the aedicula with sloping roof and they are protected by a glass.
Frances Mayes, the famous American writer, talks about the Via Crucis, on her famous book “Under the Tuscan Sun”.
The access to the Via Crucis is free, and if you come to Cortona, you definitely have to visit this work of art, and follow all the path, up to the top of the hill.

The Basilica of Santa Margherita is dedicated to the patron Saint of Cortona “Santa Margherita” and it is located on the top of the hill. Margherita had a peculiar story. At the age of 17 she felt in love with a young man, called Arsenio. From this union a baby was born, but outside of marriage. This was a strange and awful situation in the Middle Age. In 1273, during a hunting trip, Arsenio was killed, and she was repudiated by his family. So, she was all alone with a baby, and the best solution is to retire to a convent. She came to Cortona, and entered in the city through Porta Berarda, a door that is still visible nowadays. She was hosted by the Franciscan friars of the monastery of San Francesco. On that place she also founded the hospital (that had been working until about 30 years ago). When the Saint dead, the 22nd of February 1297, the people who lived in Cortona decided to build a church dedicated to her, next to the ancient little church of San Basilio, that Margherita restored after choosing it as place of penance and prayer. She loved this isolated place, near Cortona, where it is possible to see all the Valdichiana. The works for the construction of the church began in 1297, but they finished in 1304. The church has undergone many changes during the ages. The present building is the result of the nineteenth century reconstruction. From the original medieval church remained only the rose window in the façade, the bell tower and the external wall of the choir. People of Cortona and of Val di Chiana celebrate Santa Margherita on the 22nd of February of each year. From the church of Santa Margherita, you can admire all the landscape with a 360°degree view on the beautiful Val di Chiana.

The church of Santa Maria delle Grazie al Calcinaio is a stunning church located in the lower part of the hill of Cortona, outside the city, in a place named Calcinaio. On this location during the Good Friday in 1484, a picture of the Virgin Mary with the Baby, painted on a wall of a tub used for the dressing of leather (called by people of this area “calcinaio” because of the quicklime used for this purpose), started to make miracles and healings. You could also see nowadays this picture on the main altar of the church. After the people devotions to this image, and after the offers in honour of the Virgin Mary, the Corporation of Shoemakers, who have on that place their lime thanks, decided to build a church dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The project was given to many architects, but they all rejected to build it for the steep terrain and the flow of water. Then the architect Francesco di Giorgio accept to build the church. It also seems that the famous Leonardo da Vinci took part in the design. The works started in 1485, and in the first quarter of 1500, the church reached its final version, at least in the exterior part. The last works continued slowly; in fact, the main portal was finished in 1543. When you enter inside the church, what affects you the most will be the light, that rains from the top, spreads on all the extension of the church. This is the reason why the visit is suggested especially in the morning and during the sunny day. The structure of the church has got a unique aisle flanked by two side chapel with a transept and a dome from the intersection of the presbytery equal beams.
The church is essential in its construction and what makes it so beautiful is its simplicity. Its architecture has got white and grey lines and arches that cross over each other.
Inside and outside the church there are references to Brunelleschi, one of the most famous architects in Italy during the Renaissance period.

The church of San Marco is located in the city centre of Cortona, along via Santa Margherita. San Marco, together with Santa Margherita, is the patron Saint of Cortona. The peculiarity of this church is that is composed by two superimposed churches. Another characteristic feature of this church is the big outdoor mosaic, representing the saint and his symbol: the lion. The history of the building dates back to the end of sixteenth century. During that time the Company of the Holy Trinity of Lay people designed this construction to be dedicated to the Holy Trinity.  In reality in the location where there is the church, there was an hospital for pilgrims. You can access to the upper church through a Baroque gate made during a later period. On the lower church of San Marco there is the already mentioned mosaic dedicated to San Marco and made in 1961 by the famous artist Gino Severini. The church of San Marco is not always open to public, and if you want to visit it you should ask the tourist office for some further information. Annexed to the church there is a small museum that preserve some sacred objects. The church keeps also a statue of Jesus, that together with other statues placed in other churches in Cortona, is carried during the Easter procession of the Good Friday.

The church of San Niccolò is a small, but stunning church located in the upper part of Cortona, on the quarter of the city called by all people that live in Cortona: “Poggio”. The church has got a Romanesque style, and it dates back to around fifteenth century. Inside the church there are lots of piece of art, among which you can admire a paint of the famous Luca Signorelli, the painter born in Cortona. There is a small driveway that takes you to a wide churchyard, enclosed by a wall, in front of the church entrance. The church is preceded by an original fifteenth century portico, restored in 1930. Even if the church is not so big, is one of the most characteristic and beautiful churches in Cortona. Inside the church is kept also a statue of Jesus, that together with other statues located in other churches of Cortona, is carried during the Easter procession of the Good Friday.

Via Jannelli, better known as via del Gesù, is one of the most characteristic alleys you could find in the city centre of Cortona. This street is surmounted by the back façade of the church of Gesù. The peculiarity of this alley is the presence of some houses that date back to 1300. The houses have still got some parts of their original medieval architecture. These structures have the external face stone and brick made, jambs, doors and lintels stone made, brackets wooden that support the prominent upper floor. Walking along this street you will immediately do a step back in time.

Going up on the hill of Cortona, you will reach a beautiful and quiet area of the city. This little garden is located inside the quarter called, by all people from Cortona, Poggio. This name dates back to the Middle Age, when the city of Cortona, after the formation of a new urban centre, was divided into three districts: the district of San Vincenzo, the district of Santa Maria and the district of San Marco and Poggio. The district of San Marco and Poggio was the one located in the upper part of Cortona. From here, you could reach the church of Santa Margherita, the church of the patron saint of the city. It is one of the most stunning areas in Cortona, because in a few minutes you can easily reach the centre of Cortona, but at the same time you are located on a quiet and peaceful area. In the quarter of Poggio you could find two important churches: the church of San Niccolò and the small, but beautiful church of San Cristoforo. If you go straight on, passing the church of San Cristoforo, you will meet the Etruscan walls, and passing one of the door of the city called Porta Montanina, you could go out of town and from this part you can admire a beautiful landscape of the Val di Chiana, and an amazing silhouette of Cortona.

“Eremo delle Celle” is a masterpiece you can’t miss if you come to visit the area of Cortona. It is located just few kilometres far from the town, and it is a place of peace and calm. The monastery is built surrounded by nature and woods. The Eremo is one of the first Franciscan settlement chosen and wanted by San Francesco of Assisi. The history of the hermitage begins before the arrival of San Francesco. In fact, the name of this location Celle says that in this place once there was the ancient presence of small caves originated from the rocks, and used by the local shepherds and farmers. San Francesco arrived in Cortona in 1211 together with friar Silvestro. Thanks to a blessed from Cortona named Guido Vagnottelli, he knew this place. Francesco made some cells, included the one where he stayed many times, until few months before his death. You could still see his cell, that remained the same as it was when San Francesco was alive. After the death of the Saint, the monastery was fixed and expanded by friar Elia, the general minister of the Order of Friars Minors of that period. The construction works for the monastery, as it is today, began in 1235, when Frate Elia, who was from Cortona, started to build the first part of the convent. From the 1537 the monastery is inhabited by the Capuchin order of monks. Around the Eremo there is a beautiful wood of holm oak and cypress. And inside this wood there is a bridge, called Ponte del Granduca (Bridge of Gran Duke), that is over the river that go through the hermitage. This bridge dates back to 1728, and it was ordered by the Grand duke of Tuscany. The wood that surrounds the bridge and all the hermitage, dates back to very ancient times, because already in the oldest reproductions of hermitage, you can clearly see the big trees that surrounds the monastery. The hermitage is always generally open, so you could go and visit it when you like. Don’t miss the chance to visit this place, because is a place of soul, spirituality and nature, and this visit will remain in your heart and in your mind.