For the lovers of art history and architecture, the territory of Viterbo offers a dense and rich collection of samples consisting of testimonies that go from the middle Ages to the whole Renaissance and beyond. Given its position at the center of the Province, Viterbo remains the starting point, also known as "City of the Popes" for being nominated in 1257 as the papal residence, at the behest of Pope Alexander IV. From 1268 to 1271, it housed the first conclave in history inside the splendid Palazzo dei Papi.
Viterbo. Palazzo dei Papi
The historic center of the province capital is enclosed within amazing surrounding walls extending for 5 km. Noble palaces, fountains and monuments attest to the past glories of the ancient city, named also as "the city of beautiful women and beautiful fountains". Precisely the fountains with a characteristic spindle shape that often evoke a distinctly medieval suggestion.
The first mandatory destination for visiting the city is the central Piazza del Plebiscito (second half of the XIII century), facing the Palazzo dei Priori (1264, expanded in 1448), with its elegant portico, the internal garden, the Governor's Palace, the Palazzo del Podestà (with the Clock Tower), and the Church of S. Angelo (1145) with the monument to the Bella Galiana. A visit inside the Palazzo Municipale, will let visitors appreciate the beautiful frescoes made in the sixteenth century, in particular those of the Sala Règia, of the Madonna hall and the Council room.
Do not miss the medieval district of San Pellegrino (the only example of a preserved district completely intact and unaltered after 800 years from its birth), where it is possible to admire the Alessandri Palace and the Museum of the Facchini della Macchina di Santa Rosa. Do not miss the monumental complex of the Palazzo dei Papi: the Duomo, the Palazzo dei Papi, the medieval house of Valentino della Pagnotta (13th century) and the Diocesan Museum.
Just 4 km from the center, lies the suburb of Bagnaia. Here, besides the medieval village, it is possible to visit the extraordinary Villa Lante, made in 1578 probably on projects by Jacopo Barozzi da Vignola. With the typical example of the "Italian gardens", the villa is one of the most interesting Renaissance exempla of central Italy.
Just 7 km from the center of Viterbo, in the suburb of San Martino al Cimino, it is possible to visit Palazzo Doria Pamphili (seventeenth century) and the Cistercian Abbey (XII century), located in the seventeenth century center wanted by Donna Olimpia Maidalchini, a characteristic example of popular urban planning characterized by small townhouses.
Bagnaia. Villa Lante
Not far from the city you can find Vitorchiano, a suggestive example of a medieval village perched on a tufaceous spur. Continuing along the via Ortana, you reach Bomarzo, home of the Orsini Castle (XIII-XVI century) and the most famous Parco dei Mostri (XVI century), built by Vicino Orsini, where it is possible to re-live the glories and idleness of the Renaissance in the presence of fantastic monsters. A little further, on the slopes of the Monti Cimini, rises Soriano nel Cimino. Here you can visit the Rocca Orsini (XIII century) and the Palazzo Chigi-Albani (XVI century), where the precious Fontana Papacqua, a work by Vignola, is a real source of pride. After a visit to the Orsini Castle of Vasanello (XIII century) and to the Ruspoli Castle in Vignanello (from the 16th century), Caprarola well deserves a stop, as it hosts the undisputed pearl of the Italian Renaissance, the Palazzo Farnese. Pentagonal plan, built at the end of the sixteenth century by Vignola, the building features fantastic frescoes and beautiful Italian gardens. The major artists of the XVI century worked here, by the Zuccari brothers involved in the pictorial works, to Tommaso Ghinucci for the installations of the water features. Continuing we arrive in Civita Castellana, where we can visit the Rocca Dei Borgia (1447) headquarter of the National Archaeological Museum and the beautiful cathedral of Santa Maria Maggiore, indisputable example of the art of the Cosmati. From the Faliscan Center we move to Oriolo Romano, where one the Renaissance Altieri Palaceis, built at the end of the sixteenth century; then continue to Monte Romano where one can find the nearby imposing castle of Rocca Respampani (1608). A little further along the coast we reach Tarquinia (once Corneto), which stands on a plateau facing the sea, and is immediately recognizable by the numerous towers that distinguish the medieval historical center.
Caprarola. Palazzo Farnese
Unique in its fifteenth-century Florentine style architecture, Palazzo Vitelleschi (1440), headquarters to the National Archaeological Museum and the Palazzo Comunale, with the impressive medieval profferlo restored in the Baroque period. Inside there is a hall of frescoes with episodes and characters from the history of the Cornetan painted between the centuries XVI and XVII.
Continuing on the Aurelia, we arrive in Vulci to visit the Castello Della Badia (XIII century) where the homonymous Etruscan - Roman bridge stands out. Moving back inland we find Tuscania with its suggestive historic center, rich of noble buildings built between the fourteenth and seventeenth century, and the two superb Romanesque churches: church of San Pietro and Santa Maria Maggiore. Once in Capodimonte on Lake Bolsena, we find the Rocca Farnese (XVI century). At the center of the lake there are two islands that are not visitable, Martana and Bisentina. The second houses many buildings, works of famous Renaissance architects, such as Sangallo and Vignola. Along the lake we visit the Farnesian Rock of Valentano and the Farnese Palace of Gradoli, both of the XVI century and museum sites.
Vulci. Castello della Badia
A little further on, at the border with Tuscany, we find Acquapendente, which offers us a suggestive visits to the Crypt of the Holy Sepulcher and the castles of Torre Alfina, Trevinano and Proceno. Returning on the lake shores, you reach Bolsena, where the Castello Monaldeschi della Cervara stands (XIII-XIV century) housing the Territorial Museum of Lake Bolsena and the complex of Santa Cristina (XVI sec.). Proceeding towards Viterbo, we meet Montefiascone whose summit is dominated by the remains of the ancient Rocca dei Papi (13th-16th century), and by the monumental churches of San Flaviano (XII-XIV sec.) e Santa Margherita (XVI century).
Civita di Bagnoregio. The Dying City
Going inland you can reach Civita di Bagnoregio better known as the “dying City ", one of the most evocative villages in Italy, immersed in the Calanchi valley, isolated in time, on a tufaceous spur. Finally, passing through the Tiber valley, we reach the village of Orte, where in September with the opening of the taverns we dive into a fascinating medieval reality.
