Holiday apartment in Spello: mosaics, frescoes and Roman walls

Spello combines Roman urban history, sacred art and routes along the Via di Francesco. As an Umbrian town, Spello is one of the places through which this route passes. The Villa dei Mosaici, the Pinacoteca and the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore each add a different cultural dimension. This creates a destination where art discoveries, historic buildings and walks can be combined into a varied stay.

Mosaics, paintings and special details

One of the most distinctive attractions is the Villa dei Mosaici di Spello. It was discovered in July 2005 just outside Spello’s city walls, in the Sant’Anna area. The museum features ten rooms with mosaic floors and polychrome decorations. Geometric motifs meet human figures, wild animals and fantastic creatures. A free interactive app provides additional multimedia content, detailed photographs and an audio guide.

The Pinacoteca’s art collection is housed in the rooms of the Palazzo dei Canonici. It includes Gothic and Baroque goldsmith’s work, medieval and Renaissance wooden sculptures, and paintings dating from the late 13th century to the 18th century. In the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, the Baglioni Chapel was completely frescoed by Pinturicchio between late summer 1500 and spring 1501. The frescoes depict episodes from the life of Mary as well as everyday scenes with detailed representations of clothing, hairstyles, decorations, flowers and vegetation.

Roman traces in the townscape

Porta Venere was built during the Augustan period and is therefore one of the town’s historic landmarks. Spello’s Augustan-era circuit of walls is around 2 km long and was built from limestone from Monte Subasio. Parts of the circuit were reused in the Middle Ages. Along Via Roma, you can walk beside a section of Spello’s Augustan city walls.

San Claudio between antiquity and pilgrimage history

The Church of San Claudio is a 12th-century Romanesque building standing on the remains of a Roman thermal complex. Between the 14th and 15th centuries, San Claudio was a pilgrimage destination. Important fairs were held in the square in front of the façade. The site therefore brings together religious history, older Roman traces and the memory of public market activity.

Routes through lanes and workshops

The Foligno–Assisi section of the Via di Francesco leaves Spello through Porta Montanara and then continues along Via Bulgarella. In addition, Spello’s municipal visitor itineraries lead through lanes and paths and include workshops and olive mills. This allows you to choose different focuses for your days: historic walls, pilgrimage routes or insights into the craft- and agriculture-oriented aspects of town life.

A holiday apartment in Spello to suit your travel plans

When choosing a holiday apartment in Spello, you can use your preferred daily rhythm as a guide. Mosaic floors, frescoes and Roman architectural history create a different focus from lanes, paths, workshops and olive mills. This allows you to shape your travel plans around a balance of concentrated cultural experiences and active exploration, without attributing any features of the accommodation to the sights.

More destinations for planning your trip

If you would like to continue your journey beyond Spello, you can find more destinations here: Piedicolle, San Litardo, Campello Sul Clitunno, Todi, Pianello, Santa Maria Degli Angeli, Uncinano, Mezzopiano.

To the higher-level travel overview: Perugia.