WHAT SHOULD YOU CERTAINLY VISIT IN SPILIMBERGO?

 

THE COLORFUL CITY

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The town of Spilimbergo can be easily called the colorful city. Walking through the main street 'Corso Roma' everywhere you look you see frescoed palazzi which house the many shops, restaurants, and bars. The street leads to the main square where the Cathedral is located, even the walls of the Cathedral are decorated with a big Saint, Santo Cristoforo.  Not far from the church you see a small bridge and after crossing it you're faced with the most beautiful frescoed palazzo of Spilimbergo, which name is (how else) 'palazzo dipinto'  - the painted palace. This colorful tradition continues with the many mosaics sculptures you see scattered throughout the city which are made by the local mosaic school.

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HISTORY AND SIGHTS

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The history of the city dates back to the eleventh century when an important noble family settled here. The Spengenberg family who were appointed landlords by the Patriarch of Aquileia. It is highly likely that the Italian degeneration of their German surname has given the name Spilimbergo to this town.

 

The Cathedral built in the 13th century was largely financed by the Earl Walterpertoldo whose sarcophagus is still located in the crypt of the cathedral. In the apse, there ones stood the beautiful wooden carved choir seats made during the Renaissance period in the late 15th century. They were moved to the nearby church SS Giuseppe e Pantaleone where you can visit them.

 

IMPORTANT MOSAIC SCHOOL

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The city is close to the largest and widest river of the region, the impressive Tagliamento that literally cuts the region in half. The fact that Spilimbergo is so close to this river filled with pebbles, has changed completely the fate of this town after the First World War.

 

In the twenties, many young boys had lost their fathers who were killed during the Great War. To allow them to learn a profession that they could no longer learn from their fathers, a certain Mr. Lodovico Zanini, with the help of the mayor, decided to create this mosaic school. The pebbles from the nearby river are used to create tiny mosaic stones.

 

The Mosaic School has become one of the most important mosaic schools in Italy, along with the one in Ravenna. The training lasts three years and young people from around the world come here to learn this art. Already during the school program, students are used for restoration work around the world.

 

VISIT THE NEARBY PROVESANO 

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In the nearby village of Provesano you can visit the beautiful little church 'San Leonardo' that hosts religious frescoes of the local Renaissance painter Gianfrancesco da Tolmezzo.