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| Comune di Fabriano | |
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 Municipal coat of arms |
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| Country |  Italy |
| Region | [Marche] |
| Province | Ancona (AN) |
| Mayor | Roberto Sorci (since June 10, 2002) |
| Elevation | 325 m (1,066 ft) |
| Area | 269.91 km² (104 sq mi) |
| Population (as of December 31, 2004) | |
| - Total | 30,676 |
| - Density | 114/km² (295/sq mi) |
| Time zone | CET, UTC+1 |
| Coordinates | |
| Gentilic | Fabrianesi |
| Dialing code | 0732 |
| Postal code | 60044 |
| Frazioni | see list |
| Patron | St. John the Baptist |
| - Day | June 24 |
| Website: www.piazzalta.it | |
Fabriano is a town and comune of Ancona province in the Italian region of the Marche, at , at 325 m (1066 ft) above sea-level. It lies in the Esino valley 44 km (27 mi) upstream and SW of Jesi; and 15 km ENE of Fossato di Vico and 36 km (22 mi) E of Gubbio (both in Umbria). According to the 2003 census, Fabriano's population was 30,300: its location on the main highway and rail line from Umbria to the Adriatic make it a mid-sized regional center in the Apennines.
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History
Fabriano appears to have been founded in the early Middle Ages by the inhabitants of a small Roman town 5 km (3 mi) south at Attiggio (Latin Attidium), of which some slight remains and inscriptions are extant. Fabriano itself was one of the earliest places in Europe to make high-quality paper on an industrial scale, starting in the 13th century, and the town even today has a reputation for fine watermarked paper. This led to Fabriano's prosperity in the Late Middle Ages and the Renaissance, and was also one of the factors that led to the establishment of nearby Foligno in Umbria as the earliest printing center in Italy in the late 15th century.
Main sights
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Fabriano's wealth and commitment to the fine arts in the late medieval period have left it with many monuments.
Churches
- The Cathedral of St. Venantius (14th century, rebuilt in 1607-1617). From the Baroque restoration are the stucco decoration of the interior and the canvasses by Gregorio Preti, Salvator Rosa, Giovan Francesco Guerrieri, Giuseppe Puglia and Orazio Gentileschi. To the original Cathedral belong the polygonal apse, the cloister and the St. Lawrence Chapel, with frescoes from of Allegretto di Nuzio (c. 1360). Also important are the frescoes with histories of the Holy Cross by the Folignate Giovanni di Corraduccio (1415).
- San Domenico
- Sts. Blaise and Romuald
- Sant'Onofrio
- St. Philip
- The Benedictine Abbey
- Sant'Agostino
- St. Catherine
- Collegiata of St. Nicholas
- Santa Maria del Piangato
- St. Benedict
- Oratory of the Gonfalone
Other buildings
- Palazzo del Podestà (1255) built in white stone from Vallemontagnana and subsequently modified several times. It has a characteristical bridge structure, a memory of the stream which once flew under it. The central arcade has frescoes from the 13th-14th centuries portraying warriors and an enigmatic Wheel of Fortune moved by a feminine figure.
- Sturinalto Fountain (1285), designed by Jacopo di Grondolo, also author of the Fontana Maggiore in Perugia.
- Communal Palace (c. 1350, rebuilt in 1690). It was the residence of the Chiavelli family, lords of the city until 1435. In the court is a lapidarium with fragments of buildings of the ancient Roman cities of Attidium (Attiggio), Tuficum (Borgo Tufico) and Sentinum (Sassoferrato).
- The former Hospital of St. Mary of Good Jesus (1456)
- Loggiato of St. Francis (c. 1450)
- Vasari Portico (1316)
- Museum of Paper
Famous natives of Fabriano
Gentile da Fabriano, 15th century painter, whose most famous work, an oil painting of the Epiphany, is in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.
Fractions
Campodonico, Serradica, Cancelli, Melano, Marischio, San Donato, Bastia, Vallina, Cupo, Nebbiano, Collegiglioni, Attiggio, Collamato, Argignano, San Michele, Albacina, Borgo Tufico, Moscano, Poggio San Romualdo, San Giovanni, Castelletta, Vigne, S. Elia, Precicchie, Valleremita, Campodiegoli, Grotte, Marenella, Coccore, Cacciano.
External links
(Incorporates text from Bill Thayer's Gazetteer of Italy, by permission.)
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