Cortona (, ) is a town and ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' in the

province of Arezzo The province of Arezzo () is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Arezzo. The province is bordered by the regions of Marche, Emilia-Romagna, Umbria, and the provinces Siena and Florence of Tuscany. It has an area ...

, in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

, Italy. It is the main cultural and artistic centre of the

Val di Chiana The Val di Chiana, Valdichiana, or Chiana Valley, formerly Clanis Valley, is a tectonic valley of central Italy, whose valley floor consists of important alluvial residues filled up since the 11th century, lying on the territories of the provinc ...

after

Arezzo Arezzo ( , ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the Province of Arezzo, province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of Above mean sea level, above sea level. As of 2 ...

Toponymy

Cortona is derived from Latin Cortōna, and from Etruscan 𐌂𐌖𐌓𐌕𐌖𐌍 (''curtun'', 𐌍𐌖𐌕𐌓𐌖𐌂 in Etruscan). According to linguist

Helmut Rix Helmut Rix (4 July 1926, in Amberg – 3 December 2004, in Colmar) was a German linguist and professor of the Sprachwissenschaftliches Seminar of Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Freiburg, Germany. He is best known for his research into Indo-Euro ...

, ethnic in Etruscan was ''curthute'' (''curѳute''), attested as a gentile in an inscription from

Chiusi Chiusi ( Etruscan: ''Clevsin''; Umbrian: ''Camars''; Ancient Greek: ''Klysion'', ''Κλύσιον''; Latin: ''Clusium'') is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Siena, Tuscany, Italy. History Clusium (''Clevsin or Camars'' in Etruscan) ...

, in the

province of Siena The province of Siena (, ) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena. It has 259,826 inhabitants. Geography The province is divided into seven historical areas: * Alta Val d'Elsa * Chian ...

History

Etruscan period

An Etruscan presence is found archaeologically from the late Villanovan while there is no such evidence of an Umbrian origin of the city. Between the 8th and 7th centuries BC it became an important member of the Etruscan League or a ''lucumonia''. Most likely, Cortona became a very powerful city thanks to its strategic position, which allowed a wide control of nearby territory. In the 4th century BC the Etruscans built the imposing walls that surround the city for about 3 km, the "melon" tombs scattered around the city and the monumental funerary altar (Tumulus II of the Sodo) adorned with sphinxes, a unique example in Italy. The Tabula Cortonensis was also found here, a bronze sheet with one of the longest inscriptions in the Etruscan language. In 310 BC many Etruscan cities were subdued by Rome and Cortona made an alliance with Rome which however was not respected and led to a violent clash near Lake Trasimeno.

Roman period

Cortona eventually became a Roman colony under the name ''Corito''. Cortona lost much of its influence under Roman rule. The

Via Cassia The Via Cassia () was an important Roman road striking out of the Via Flaminia near the Milvian Bridge in the immediate vicinity of Rome and, passing not far from Veii, traversed Etruria. The ''Via Cassia'' passed through Baccanae, Sutrium ...

, the main Roman artery through central Etruria, led directly from

, bypassing Cortona. During the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Ancient Carthage, Carthage and Roman Republic, Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For ...

Hannibal besieged and attacked Cortona. The famous battle of Trasimeno took place not far away and the hamlet of Ossaia, not far from the battlefield, takes its name because the remains of the dead were amassed there, becoming an

ossuary An ossuary is a chest, box, building, well, or site made to serve as the final resting place of human skeletal remains. They are frequently used where burial space is scarce. A body is first buried in a temporary grave, then after some years th ...

. Traces from the Roman period can also be found in the names of some local hamlets, in particular Metelliano, derived from the toponym of the patrician family Metelli, and Centoia on an ancient checkpoint near the via Cassia, seat of a

Century A century is a period of 100 years or 10 decades. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. ...

, sub-unit of the Roman army. In 450 AD the Goths occupied Cortona. In the final stages of the

Gothic War (535–554) The Gothic War between the Byzantine Empire during the reign of Roman emperor, Emperor Justinian I and the Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy took place from 535 to 554 in the Italian peninsula, Dalmatia (theme), Dalmatia, Sardinia, Sicily, and Cors ...

, Cortona was sacked and destroyed.

Later History

Cortona became a Ghibellinian city state in the 13th century, with its own currency. From 1325 to 1409, the Ranieri-Casali family successfully ruled the town. After being conquered by Ladislaus of Naples in 1409, Cortona was sold to the Medici in 1411. In 1737, the senior branch of the Medici line became extinct and Cortona came under the authority of the House of Lorraine. Following the Italian Wars of Independence, Tuscany—Cortona included—became part of the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

. It had a population of around 5,000 inhabitants by the 1840s.

Cortona foundation myth

The foundation of Cortona remains mixed in myths dating to classic times. These were later reworked especially in the late Renaissance period under

Cosimo I de' Medici Cosimo I de' Medici (12 June 1519 – 21 April 1574) was the second and last duke of Florence from 1537 until 1569, when he became the first grand duke of Tuscany, a title he held until his death. Cosimo I succeeded his cousin to the duchy. ...

. The 17th-century Guide of Giacomo Lauro, reworked from writings of Annio da Viterbo, states that 108 years after the Great Flood, Noah entered the Valdichiana via the

Tiber The Tiber ( ; ; ) is the List of rivers of Italy, third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the R ...

and Paglia rivers. He preferred this place to anywhere else in Italy, because it was so fertile, and dwelt there for thirty years. One of Noah's descendants was Crano, his son who came to the hilltop and, liking the high position, the fine countryside and the calm air, built the city of Cortona on it in 273 years after the Great Flood.

Main sights

The prevailing character of Cortona's architecture is medieval with steep narrow streets situated on a hillside at an elevation of that embraces a view of the whole of the Valdichiana. From the Piazza Garibaldi (still referred to by the local population by its older name, Piazza Carbonaia) is a fine prospect of Lake Trasimeno, scene of

Hannibal Hannibal (; ; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Punic people, Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Ancient Carthage, Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War. Hannibal's fat ...

's ambush of the Roman army in 217 BC ( Battle of Lake Trasimene). Cortona Archaeological Park hosts interesting remains from the Etruscan city state, including ancient walls, buildings and ceremonial tombs. boasts a number of interesting remains from its past as an Etruscan city state. The surrounding countryside is dotted with sections of ancient walls, buildings and ceremonial tombs. Parts of the Etruscan city wall can still be seen today as the basis of the present wall. The main street, via Nazionale, is the only street in the town with no gradient, and is still usually referred to by locals by its older name of Ruga Piana. Outside Cortona are the Roman villa at Ossaia and the Roman roads in the hills nearby which can still be traveled today. The ''Palazzo Casali'', also known as ''Palazzo Pretorio'', houses the '' Museo dell'Accademia Etrusca'', displaying items from Etruscan, Roman, and Egyptian civilizations, as well as art and artefacts from the Medieval and Renaissance eras. The distinguished Etruscan Academy Museum had its foundation in 1727 with the collections and library of Onofrio Baldelli. Among its most famous ancient artefacts is the bronze ''lampadario'' or Etruscan hanging lamp, found at Fratta near Cortona in 1840 and then acquired by the Academy for the large sum of 1600 Florentine scudi. Its iconography includes (under the 16 burners) alternating figures of

Silenus In Greek mythology, Silenus (; , ) was a companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus. He is typically older than the satyrs of the Dionysian retinue ('' thiasos''), and sometimes considerably older, in which case he may be referred to as a Pa ...

playing

panpipes A pan flute (also known as panpipes or syrinx) is a musical instrument based on the principle of the closed tube, consisting of multiple pipes of gradually increasing length (and occasionally girth). Multiple varieties of pan flutes have been ...

or double flutes, and of sirens or harpies. Within zones representing waves, dolphins and fiercer sea-creatures is a

gorgon The Gorgons ( ; ), in Greek mythology, are three monstrous sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa, said to be the daughters of Phorcys and Ceto. They lived near their sisters the Graeae, and were able to turn anyone who looked at them to sto ...

-like face with protruding tongue. Between each burner is a modelled horned head of

Achelous In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Achelous (also Acheloos or Acheloios) (; Ancient Greek: Ἀχελώϊος, and later , ''Akhelôios'') was the god associated with the Achelous River, the largest river in Greece. Accordi ...

. It is supposed that the lampadario derived from some important north Etruscan religious shrine of around the second half of the 4th century BC. A later (2nd century BC) inscription shows it was rededicated for votive purposes (tinscvil) by the ''Musni'' family at that time. The Museum contains several other important Etruscan bronzes. Etruscan chamber-tombs nearby include the ''Tanella di Pitagora'' (halfway up the hill from Camucia): the fine masonry of the tomb stands exposed, but was formerly covered by an earth mound. Two at the foot of the hillside at Il Sodo, and a complex in Camucia itself. Il Sodo I, the 'Grotta Sergardi' commonly known as 'Il Melone', contains a passage, opening into parallel passages leading to square inner chambers, within a mound about in circumference. Although the chambers are paved with slabs of masonry the walls are constructed of pieces of rock roughly-formed into bricks. This tomb can be visited. Il Sodo II contained a large stone-stepped altar platform with carved sphinxes devouring warriors. The town's chief artistic treasures are two panels by Fra Angelico in the Diocesan Museum, an ''

Annunciation The Annunciation (; ; also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord; ) is, according to the Gospel of Luke, the announcement made by the archangel Gabriel to Ma ...

'' and a ''Madonna and Child with Saints''. A third surviving work by the same artist is the fresco above the entrance to the church of ''San Domenico'', likewise painted during his stay at Cortona in 1436. The Diocesan Museum houses also a group of work by Giuseppe Maria Crespi, known as Lo Spagnuolo, called ''Ecstasy of Saint Margaret''. The Academy Museum includes the very well known painting ''Maternità'' of 1916 by the Cortonese artist

Gino Severini Gino Severini (7 April 1883 – 26 February 1966) was an Italian Painting, painter and a leading member of the Futurism (art), Futurist movement. For much of his life he divided his time between Paris and Rome. He was associated with neo-classici ...

. There are also examples of the works of

Pietro da Cortona Pietro da Cortona (; 1 November 1596 or 159716 May 1669) was an Italian Baroque painter and architect. Along with his contemporaries and rivals Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, he was one of the key figures in the emergence of Roman ...

. The villa ''Bramasole'', built in 1504, was used as the location for the 2003 film '' Under the Tuscan Sun''.

The Imperial villa of Ossaia

The Imperial villa was inhabited from the 1st century BC until the 6th century AD. The large, luxurious, elongated terraced villa was owned first by the consular family Vibii Pansae, followed by

Gaius Caesar Gaius Caesar (20 BC – 21 February 4 AD) was a grandson and heir to the throne of Roman emperor Augustus, alongside his younger brother Lucius Caesar. Although he was born to Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa and Julia the Elder, Julia, Augustus' only ...

and

Lucius Caesar Lucius Caesar (17 BC – 20 August 2 AD) was a grandson of Augustus, the first Roman emperor. The son of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa and Julia the Elder, Augustus' only daughter, Lucius was adopted by his grandfather along with his older brother, G ...

, grandsons and heirs to the throne of emperor

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

Other archaeological areas

The archaeological park of Cortona has 11 sites, among which is the second tumulus of the Sodo, an imposing 6th century BC tomb with a monumental staircase decorated by large sculptural groups. * Etruscan walls. The walls encircle the town on the original foundations shown by their massive stones. The Porta Bifora is double-arched and the sole remaining Etruscan Gate. The Romans repaired damaged walls and built new gates on the two main roads of the city: the Porta Sant'Agostino, Porta Colonia, Porta Santa Maria and Porta San Domenico. * Tomb of Mezzavia * Tumulus I of the Sodo * Tumulus II of the Sodo * Tanella Angori * Tanella di Pitagora * Tumulus of Camucia * Roman road of Torreone * Roman road of Mount Maestrino * Roman road of Teverina Bassa * Baths of Bacchus cistern * Wall section at Palazzo Cerulli-Diligenti * Wall section at Palazzo Casali * Barrel vault near via Guelfa

Renaissance architecture

'' Santa Maria Nuova'', built by

Giorgio Vasari Giorgio Vasari (30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance painter, architect, art historian, and biographer who is best known for his work ''Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects'', considered the ideol ...

in 1554, is a domed church with a centralized Greek cross layout. Inside are four large columns which supports the lantern of the cupola. At the sides the four arms of the cross branch out covered with barrel-vaults, while four small cupolas arise in the spaces of the angles. The interior contains paintings depicting a '' Nativity'' by Alessandro Allori, ''San Carlo Borromeo administers communion to those afflicted by Plague'' by Baccio Ciarpi, and an ''Annunciation'' by

Empoli Empoli () is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany, Italy, about southwest of Florence, to the south of the Arno River, Arno in a plain formed by the river. The plain has been usable for agriculture since Ancient Ro ...

. The church is in poor condition, and the interior is not open for visitors. '' Santa Maria delle Grazie al Calcinaio'' was built in 1484–1515 by Francesco di Giorgio Martini to shelter a putatively miraculous icon of the

Blessed Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

, the "Madonna del Calcinaio". This image was originally painted on the timbers of a lime-vat, a ''calcinaio'', hence the name. A centralized Renaissance design was applied to the design of the nave: the eastern part of the building was generally developed into a centralized form, which would then be crowned with a large cupola, foreshadowing the cathedral at Florence. The restored interior has unusually high arches.

Other churches

* Cathedral (Duomo) of Cortona (''Santa Maria'') * Basilica of Santa Margherita * Guzzetti Chapel * Spirito Santo * San Benedetto * San Cristoforo * San Domenico * San Filippo Neri * San Francesco * San Marco * San Niccolò * Santa Chiara * (Former) church of the Gesù * Abbey of Farneta * Franciscan Convent de Le Celle * San Donnino (or, Madonna della Croce) * Pieve di San Michele Arcangelo at Metelliano * Sanctuary of the Madonna del Bagno * San Biagio at Pierle * San Marco Evangelista

Transportation

Cortona may be accessed by rail: the closest station is Camucia-Cortona, away. In addition Terontola-Cortona station lies in the district of Terontola. Both stations lie on the Florence–Rome railway, while Terontola-Cortona station is also at the junction with the line to Foligno, via . There are direct trains from

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

, Rome, and Foligno (via Perugia).

Wine

In 2000, Cortona established Cortona DOC (''

Denominazione di Origine Controllata The following four classification of wine, classifications of wine constitute the Italy, Italian system of labelling and legally protecting Italian wine: * ''Denominazione di origine'' (DO, rarely used; ; 'designation of origin'); * ''Indicazione ...

''), which has 29 members that produce and control 14 different types of wines.

Notable people

* Margaret of Cortona (1247–1297) * Luca Signorelli (1445–1523) * Francesco Laparelli (1521–1570), engineer and builder * Bernardino Radi (1581–1643), sculptor and architect *

(1596–1669), important architect and painter * Domenico Cecchi "il Cortona" (c. 1650/55–1717), celebrated Italian castrato and opera singer (soprano) *

(1883–1966), painter of Futurism * Lorenzo Cherubini –

Jovanotti Lorenzo Cherubini (; born 27 September 1966), known professionally as Jovanotti (), is an Italian singer-songwriter, rapper, and disc jockey. The name Jovanotti derives from ''giovanotti'', the plural form of the Italian word ''giovanotto'' (" ...

(born 1966), musician * Frances Mayes (born 1940), author * Francesco Attesti (born 1975), classical pianist * Andrea Cottini (born 1976), football player * Zerocalcare (born 1983), cartoonist

Sister cities

Cortona is twinned with: *

Athens, Georgia Athens is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Downtown Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta. The University of Georgia, the state's flagship public university and an Research I university, ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, since 1978 * Château-Chinon,

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, since 1980 * San José de los Remates,

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

, since 1989 * Krujë,

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

, since 1995 *

Czechowice-Dziedzice Czechowice-Dziedzice (), known until 1958 as Czechowice, is a town in Bielsko County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland. The town has 35,684 inhabitants, as of December 2021. It lies on the northeastern edge of the historical region of Cieszyn ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, since 2014 * Carmel, Indiana,

, since 2022 * La Valletta,

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

, since 2022

In popular culture

Cortona was featured as one of the destinations in a travel episode of '' Conan'', in which

Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, actor, and producer. He is best known for having hosted Late-night talk show, late-night talk shows, beginning with ''Late Night with Conan O'B ...

and Jordan Schlansky (one of the show's associate producers) visit

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

.Archived a
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
Schlansky, being a recurring visitor of Cortona, is awarded a parking space by the city's mayor and introduces O' Brien to his favourite restaurant, where he, with questionable success, explains the food, wine, and the surrounding area, to his travel companion. Cortona was also featured in Frances Mayes' book '' Under the Tuscan Sun'', basis for the eponymous

movie A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

starring Diane Lane. She visits Cortona on a tour and buys a villa on the outskirts. Cortona was also featured in

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. The concept is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film, also written by Whedon, a ...

season 1, episode 8: " I, Robot... You, Jane", where a circle of priests trap the demon Moloch into a book using a magic ritual.

References

External links

Cortonaweb: everything about Cortona

Sanctuary of Saint Margaret of Cortona

Cortona Mia: Art, all restaurants, bnb, accommodation, apéritif, night life

Everything about Cortona

Maec – The Museum of the Etruscan Academy
– Pierle
''Il Pollo della Valdichiana'', contemporary information newsletter, now published as ''Valdichiana oggi''
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Tuscany Hilltowns in Tuscany Roman villas in Italy