4 Best Sights in Sansepolcro, Tuscany

In a combination of Romanesque and Gothic styles, Sansepolcro's cathedral, though somewhat austere, contains some significant works of art. These include the Volto Santo, a wooden sculpture of the 9th century, which is believed to be the earliest crucifix depicting a completely clothed Christ on the cross. The Ascension of Christ, by Perugino (circa 1448–1523), and its neighbor, an Assumption of the Virgin, by Jacopo Palma the Younger (circa 1550–1628) are also highlights.

This sleepy town, sitting on a small knoll about 15 km (9 miles) south of Sansepolcro, would probably attract little attention if not for the fact that, in the 1450s, Piero della Francesca painted one of his greatest masterpieces—the Madonna del Parto, a rare image of a pregnant Virgin Mary—here. It's now on display in Sansepolcro's Museo della Madonna del Parto.

Piero della Francesca is the star at this small provincial museum, where his works include the reassembled altarpiece of the Misericordia (1445–62) and frescoes depicting the Resurrection (circa 1460), Saint Julian, and the disputed Saint Louis of Toulouse, which is possibly the work of a close follower of the artist. Other works of interest are those by Santi di Tito (1536–1603), also from Sansepolcro, and Pontormo's San Quintino (1517–18).

Not surprisingly, only one painting is displayed here, Piero's Madonna del Parto (circa 1455), a fresco depicting the expectant Virgin flanked by two angels. Originally painted for the small chapel of Santa Maria a Momentana in Monterchi's cemetery, the work was restored in 1992–93 and moved, shortly thereafter, into the museum. The iconography of the image is extremely rare and, emphasized by its static atmosphere and studied symmetry, the fresco achieves an extraordinary sense of enigmatic and monumental spirituality.