Guest Blog: Saint John’s Oratory in Urbino

One thing we love about Further Afield is that a large proportion of our properties are owner managed. That in-depth knowledge of and enthusiasm for where they live often means that you as a guest get a far better experience, benefitting from their passion!

Over the coming months we’re going to be featuring some of our owners’ own blogs on Further Afield as a way of highlighting some of their passions.

As the first of our guest blogs Giulia, who with her family runs the wonderful eco farm stay Locanda Della Valle Nuova in Le Marche, introduces us to the joy of the frescos at Saint John’s Oratory in Urbino – just 12km from your wonderful Italian farm stay apartment:

When I read articles and guidebooks entries about Urbino the adjective “Medieval” is often used and the Ducal Palace is often referred to as a “Castle”.

Nothing can be less accurate! Urbino is one of the most important birthplaces of the Italian Renaissance. There are only very few Medieval buildings that still maintain their characteristics. The Palace was built at the end of the XV century and is one of the first examples of a mansion built to be enjoyed and not as a fortress.

Nevertheless Urbino hosts an amazing example of Late Medieval art: the Saint John’s Oratory by the brothers Jacopo and Lorenzo Salimbeni from San Severino Marche is one great example. The frescos represent the life of Saint John the Baptist and a crucifixion. The frescos are amazing. There’s plenty of characters that attend all the scenes and the frescos can also be regarded to as an amazing display of textiles, prints, models, capes, headgears and faces… oh, those faces! I’ve always been convinced that they were taken from real people living nearby… it’s impossible to make up some of those expressions!

I find that these frescos are an incredible mix of Medieval and very Modern style, and it’s always a pleasure going back. It’s definitely one of the things that you shouldn’t miss when you visit Urbino!

Enjoy the photos and come visit!

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Find out more about the Oratory and book a tour online: http://urbinotourguide.com/en/the_specials/oratorio-san-giovanni/

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Find out more about Locanda Della Valle Nuova

This blog originally appeared as part of the Locanda della Valle Nuova blog