Places to see in ( Cortona - Italy )
Places to see in ( Cortona - Italy )
Cortona is a hilltop town in Tuscany, Italy. The Etruscan Academy Museum displays a vast collection of bronze, ceramic and funerary items reflecting the town’s Etruscan past. The museum also includes an Archaeological Park with multiple sites, including city fortifications and stretches of Roman roads. Near the Renaissance-era cathedral is the Diocesan Museum, with sacred furnishings, plus paintings by Fra Angelico.
Rooms with a view are the rule rather than the exception in this spectacularly sited hilltop town. In the late 14th century Fra' Angelico lived and worked here, and fellow artists Luca Signorelli and Pietro da Cortona were both born within the walls – all three are represented in the Museo Diocesano's small but sensational collection. Large chunks of Under the Tuscan Sun, the soap-in-the-sun film of the book by Frances Mayes, were shot here.
Cortona is a small charming town in the Valdichiana, or Chiana Valley, in the province of Arezzo in southern Tuscany. The city, enclosed by stone walls dating back to Etruscan and Roman times, sits on the top of a hill about 600 meters (about 1968 feet) above sea level. This dominant position over the valley offers a spectacular view from all over the town of the surrounding valley and even Lake Trasimeno.
The city is small but offers many interesting places to visit, among these the Diocesan Museum (where you can admire a beautiful panel painting of the Annunciation by Beato Angelico) and the MAEC (The Etruscan Academy Museum of the City of Cortona), where it is possible to see many artifacts found in the Eruscan archeological sites in the area. You can also request additional information about the Archeological Park at the museum.
You should not miss a visit to the beautiful Santa Margherita Sanctuary, patron of the city, and to the Girifalco Fortress. Both are on the highest point on the hill and are easy to reach after a short, uphill walk. Following the path that follows the city walls, you can also enjoy a beautiful view over the surrounding countryside. The Girifalco Fortress, constructed for military purposes, has undergone many substantial changes throughout the centuries and today only a part is open to the public.
Various small shops on the main streets of Cortona offer local handmade items and gastronomical products. Great red wines are made in the area (we are just a few kilometers from Montepulciano and Montalcino) and all of the wine bars offer a wide selection.
There are many restaurants in the city, most offering traditional local and Tuscan cuisine (the Chianina cattle, one of Italy's oldest, high quality bovine breeds is bred in Valdichiana).
Just outside of Cortona's walls you'll find the Franciscan hermitage Le Celle, the first monastery built by Saint Francis of Assisi in 1211, where a small community of friars still lives today. Through the course of the centuries, the hermitage was restructured and enlarged several times but Saint Francis's small cell has always been conserved in its original state and can be visited today. In summer, Cortona organizes the Tuscan Sun Festival, an annual event dedicated to the arts which sees the participation of several international stars and artists.
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Places to see in ( Ascoli Piceno - Italy )
Places to see in ( Ascoli Piceno - Italy )
Ascoli Piceno is a town in central Italy. Piazza del Popolo, an elegant Renaissance square in the center, has travertine paving and the 13th-century Palazzo dei Capitani del Popolo, a palace built over Roman ruins. The Civic Picture Gallery, decorated with Murano glass chandeliers, displays paintings by Titian and Carlo Crivelli. Nearby is the Cathedral of St. Emidio, with a crypt featuring elaborate mosaics. With a continuous history dating from the Sabine tribe in the 9th century, Ascoli (as it's known locally) is like the long-lost cousin of ancient Rome and a small Marchigiani village, heavy on history and food. Weary legs will appreciate its lack of hills and all travellers will appreciate its historical riches, excellent pinacoteca (art gallery), trendy bars and restaurants, one of Italy's unsung perfect piazzas and the calorific treat, olive all'ascolana (veal-stuffed fried olives). Welcome to the hippest town in Le Marche.
Ascoli Piceno is the southernmost Province in The Marches. The area slopes down from the Apennines to the sea, passing through the Sibilline Mountains that rise up along the border with Umbria, and creating a formation of hills in the east towards the coastline. This sequence of hills, singing with the changing hues of the orchards and cultivated fields, gently descend from the Apennines to the sea, turning the landscape into a palette of colors.
Its two main centers reflect ancient and modern Ascoli: Piazza del Popolo and Piazza Arringo, respectively. The former was the location of the old forum, the residence of the Captains of the People, and a vibrant commercial center, whereas the latter was once the political heart of town, with its Cathedral and Bishop's Palace. Many of Ascoli's museums are concentrated in Piazza Arringo, also known as ‘Museum Square;’ they include the Pinacoteca Civica (the public art gallery), with its many masterpieces by Titian, Guido Reni and Giuseppe Pellizza da Volped; the Diocesan Museum and the State Archeological Museum. The old town is well-protected by the Tronto River and its offshoot, the Castellano River, while the modern town spans eastward, following the Tronto to the sea.
A tour of the churches here might begin with the Church of San Tommaso, and conclude at Santa Maria Intervineas, passing 14 Romanesque churches and the Baptistery (a common feature in Ascoli Piceno) along the way. Ascoli Piceno also possesses a long-established theatrical tradition, as can be seen from the many theatres built in the 19th Century, for example the Filarmonici, the Ventidio Basso, and the San Francesco di Paola Auditorium.
Geographically, the city occupies a strategic location near Sibillini National Park, the Gran Sasso-Laga National Park and the Sibilla Peak. Not far from the town lies Mt. Ascensione, a destination for pilgrimages during the Middle Ages that, nowadays, retains its sacred atmosphere. Indeed, every year in May, thousands of people ascend the mountain on Ascension Day to carry the Madonna da Polesio to the church at its top.
Moving on from Ascoli to San Benedetto del Tronto, one encounters towns such as Offida, with its 15th-Century fortress. Glimpses of the Middle Ages can be found in Ripatransone, also known as the belvedere del Piceno for its panoramic location. Among the coastal towns, worthy of note are the narrow streets of Grottammare, and the sandy beach at San Benedetto del Tronto.
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List of Catholic artists | Wikipedia audio article
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List of Catholic artists
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This list of Catholic artists concerns artists known, at least in part, for their works of religious Roman Catholic art. It may also include artists whose position as a Roman Catholic priest or missionary was vital to their artistic works or development. Because of the title, it is preferred that at least some of their artwork be in or commissioned for Catholic churches, which includes Eastern Catholic Churches in communion with the Pope.
Note that this is not a list of all artists who have ever been members of the Roman Catholic Church. Please do not add entries here without providing support for those artists having specifically Roman Catholic religious art among their works, or having Roman Catholicism as a major aspect in their careers as artists. Further, seeing as many to most Western European artists from the 5th century to the Protestant Reformation did at least some Catholic religious art, this list will supplement by linking to lists of artists of those eras rather than focusing on names of those eras.
Gaza City | Wikipedia audio article
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Gaza City
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The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.
- Socrates
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Gaza (; Arabic: غزة Ġazzah, IPA: [ˈɣazza]; Hebrew: עַזָּה, Modern: 'Aza, Tiberian: 'Azā Ancient Ġāzā), also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of 515,556, making it the largest city in the State of Palestine. Inhabited since at least the 15th century BCE, Gaza has been dominated by several different peoples and empires throughout its history. The Philistines made it a part of their pentapolis after the Ancient Egyptians had ruled it for nearly 350 years.
Under the Romans and later the Byzantines, Gaza experienced relative peace and its port flourished. In 635 CE, it became the first city in Palestine to be conquered by the Rashidun army and quickly developed into a center of Islamic law. However, by the time the Crusaders invaded the city in the late 11th century, it was in ruins. In later centuries, Gaza experienced several hardships—from Mongol raids to floods and locusts, reducing it to a village by the 16th century, when it was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire. During the first half of Ottoman rule, the Ridwan dynasty controlled Gaza and under them the city went through an age of great commerce and peace. The municipality of Gaza was established in 1893.
Gaza fell to British forces during World War I, becoming a part of Mandatory Palestine. As a result of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Egypt administered the newly formed Gaza Strip territory and several improvements were undertaken in the city. Gaza was captured by Israel in the Six-Day War in 1967, but in 1993, the city was transferred to the Palestinian National Authority. In the months following the 2006 election, an armed conflict broke out between the Palestinian political factions of Fatah and Hamas, resulting in the latter taking power in Gaza. Egypt and Israel consequently imposed a blockade on the Gaza Strip. Israel eased the blockade allowing consumer goods in June 2010, and Egypt reopened the Rafah border crossing in 2011 to pedestrians.The primary economic activities of Gaza are small-scale industries and agriculture. However, the blockade and recurring conflicts have put the economy under severe pressure. The majority of Gaza's inhabitants are Muslim, although there is also a Christian minority. Gaza has a very young population, with roughly 75% under the age of 25. The city is currently administered by a 14-member municipal council.