Gualdo Tadino - art, accomodation, events, ecc.

Gualdo Tadino

Gualdo Tadino
It is situated near the border between the Marches and Umbria, at the foot of the Central Apennines, while the ancient Tadinum (or Tadinae), first Umbrian and then Roman, was situated along the consular road Flaminia, in the plain below the present town.
It has got a rich history: under Roman rule since 266 B.C., it was razed to the ground by Hannibal (217 B.C.) . It was sacked by the troops of Julius Caesar (49-48 B.C.) because it had been on Pompeius's side. It suffered various barbarian invasions and was the site of the famous battle of "Tagina" (552), in which the Byzantine general Narsete defeated Totila's army, bringing the Gothic-Byzantine war to an end.
First destroyed by Emperor Otto III (996) and then by fire, it was rebuilt in 1273 on the "Colle di Sant'Angelo", and became a free city-state under the protection of Frederic II.
Subsequently, it submitted unwillingly to Perugia, before being put in the hands of the Church by Iacopo P. Canino (1458).
In 1833 Pope Gregory XVI gave this small village the title of city with the name of Gualdo (Waldum) Tadino (Tadinum) and in 1860 it was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy. Today, Gualdo Tadino is famous for the healthy mineral water of "Rocchetta", that gushes out of the sides of Mount Serrasanta and, above all, for the production of ceramics. This ancient art marks the economic and artistic identity of the town, that in the last years has brought back the tradition of ceramics with "reflections"n; created by the so-called "third firing". Modern industry produces tiles, plates and both useful and artistic products.
The famous International Competition of Ceramics takes place every year, and artists of more than 20 countries in the world participate.
Today at the Museum of Ceramics we can see more than 100 works of art which were awarded a prize in this competition and which represent an important document of modern artistic research in this sector.
The town is full of naturalistic beauties: the mountain localities of Valsorda, St Guido and Rocchetta, the pine-woods and the extraordinary flowers are particularly evocative.
Recently, the building of modern sports facilities (stadium, athletics pitch, swimming-pool, tennis courts, cycle path, trap-shooting, skating rink, sports centre, naturalistic routes) and the setting up of qualified health services, like the Cardiology Department, have encouraged a more specific type of tourism.
The recovery of cultural and architectural heritage, which is underway, produces a considerable historical patrimony including the Rocca Flea (XII century), an ancient fortress and a remarkable example of medieval military architecture, the church of St Francis (XIII century), with frescoes by Matteo da Gualdo (1435-1507), the Church of St Clare (XIII century), the palace of the Podestà, with an outside fountain (XVI century), attribuited to Sangallo the Elder, the Town Picture Gallery, with painting by Matteo da Gualdo, Avanzino Nucci, Sano di Pietro, Antonio da Fabriano, etc.
Gualdo Tadino is at the centre of important cultural and folkloric events: The International Ceramics Exibition (August and September) - the "Giochi delle Porte&quor; (Competitive games among the town quarters) (last Sunday of September) - Herboff, conference on the growing of herbs - Sacred Representation of Christ's Passion on Good Friday - the Poplar (Maypole) of St Pellegrino (30 April), the Bonfires of Grello (23 June)
The town has good tourist facilities.