Orvieto est maxime admirabili urbe de Umbria (ITALIA), constitueti in ardui tufacei rupe, imminenti super circumstanti valles. Eius origines referet ad vetusti etrusci civilizo: id essebat enim antiqui Velzna, lemagis sacri inter etrusci urbes, memoria de quem manet in necropole et in multiplici antiquari reliquias. Antiqui parte de urbe servat mediaevali originali forma faceti ex angiportos,turres et foros quos retinet vivi fascino de praeterito. Duomo de Orvieto, cathedrale quem est artificiosi ac spirituali corde de urbe, repraesentat uno inter maximi exemplos de gothici architectura in Italia. Eius aedificatione, incipeti in 1290, essevit adduceti a necessitate de servando digne Sacri Corporale, reliquia coniungeti ad celebre Miraculo de Bolsena (1263). Secundum traditione, in eucharistici celebratione in ecclesia de Sancti Christina quidam sacerdote, dubitanti de reali praesentia de Christo in sacri pane, videvit hostia stillanti sanguine, quem maculavit liturgici linteo. Hoc facto, interpretati ut divini signo, impellevit papa Urbano IV ad instituendo sollemnitate de “Corpus Domini” per bulla “Transiturus de hoc mundo” (anno 1264), per quem celebratione de eucharistici mysterio essevit propagati ad omni christianitate. Hodie Corporale tingeti a sanguine est servati in praeclari reliquiario ex argento et smaltos, opere de Ugolino de Vieri (1337–1338), quem est exponeti in une dicati capella intra Duomo de Orvieto. Hoc cathedrale, ultra mirabili fronte pridesegnati cum musivos et sculpturas, continet etiam celebri Capella de Sancti Bricio, affrescati a Beato Angelico et postea a Luca Signorelli, cum pictorici cyclos quos sunt inter magis alti de italici renascentia. Orvieto praebet alii locos de magni momento, ut celebri Puteo de Sancti Patricio, eximii opere de renascenti ingeniaria; Etrusci Museo, diviti de reliquias reperiti in locali necropole, quem  ipse posset essere visitati, ac denique maxime antiqui kvartalo de Sancti Iuvenale, ubi etrusci memoria et mediaevali stratos reddet veri et intimi anima de hoc urbe unici in orbe.

ENGLISH

ORVIETO: A FASCINATING CITY, WHERE THE DIVINE AND THE HUMAN MEET

Orvieto is an extremely striking city in Umbria (Italy), perched on a high tufa cliff that dominates the surrounding valleys. Its origins go back to the ancient Etruscan civilization: it was in fact the ancient Velzna, the most sacred among the Etruscan cities, whose memory endures in the necropolis and in numerous archaeological finds of the area. The old part of the city preserves its original medieval layout, with narrow alleys, towers, and squares, which keeps alive the charm of the past. The Orvieto Cathedral, which is the artistic and spiritual heart of the city, represents one of the greatest examples of Gothic architecture in Italy. Its construction, begun in 1290, was driven by the need to worthily preserve the Holy Corporal, a relic connected to the famous Miracle of Bolsena (1263). According to tradition, during the Eucharistic celebration in the Church of Saint Christina, a priest, doubtful of the real presence of Christ in the consecrated bread, saw the host bleed, staining the liturgical linen. This event, interpreted as a divine sign, moved Pope Urban IV to institute the Solemnity of Corpus Christi with the bull Transiturus de hoc mundo (1264), through which the celebration of the Eucharistic mystery spread throughout all Christendom. Today, the Corporal stained with blood is preserved in a precious reliquary of silver and enamel, the work of Ugolino di Vieri (1337–1338), displayed in a dedicated chapel inside the Cathedral of Orvieto. This cathedral, beyond its extraordinary façade adorned with mosaics and sculptures, also houses the famous Chapel of San Brizio, frescoed by Fra Angelico and later by Luca Signorelli, with painting cycles among the highest achievements of the Italian Renaissance. Orvieto also offers other places of great interest, such as the famous Well of Saint Patrick, an extraordinary work of Renaissance engineering; the Etruscan Museum, rich in artifacts discovered in the local necropolis (which is also open to visitors); and finally, the oldest quarter, San Giovenale, where the Etruscan memory and the medieval layers restore the truest and most intimate soul of this city, unique in the world.