The city of Deruta

Art, Culture, Ambient…one of the most Beautiful Villages in Italy.

The name of the city was born as a variant of “Diruta”, meaning “ruined”, as a reference to the escape of the Peruginians from their city burning in 40 a.C. during the civil war between Ottaviano and Lucio Antonio. The inhabitants settled on the hiel, now called “Perugia Vecchia”.

Located a few miles south of Perugia, the city had an important role in the Middle Age, as shown by its historical centre and its walls, with the 3 doors of Sant’Angelo, Perugina and Tuderte.

Walking through the beautiful centre on the town you can meet furnaces from the sixteenth century and many shops of ceramics.

In the centre of town is located “Largo San Francesco” with the millenary Franciscan complex with the convent and the beautiful church of San Francesco. Remarkable are also the church of Sant’Antonio Abate with frescoes from fifteenth century and the Sanctuary of Madonna dei Bagni with more than 600 ex voto plaques of majolica commissioned by the locals to thank for thanks received. The Palazzo dei Consoli, seat of the Town Hall, restaured in XVIII century, contains roman and medieval archaeological finds. Near Porta Tuderte, also called Porta del Borgo, there are traces of Hospital San Giacomo, an ancient hospital from the fifteenth century.

People in Deruta don’t forget the luck and well-being brought by ceramics, in fact they celebrate every year, on 25th of November, the “Festa dei Ceramisti” in honor of Santa Caterina from Alessandria.

In the historical centre, it’s also possible to see the small piazza Biordo Michelotti with the church of San Michele, the fountain made in 1848 and Piazza dei Consoli with the palace of the Town Hall, where is located the Pinacoteca with many paintings also from the Master Painter Il Perugino.

In front of the Town Hall is located the church of San Francesco and the former convent that hosts the Regional Museum of Ceramics since 1998.

If you’re in Deruta you might also want to visit the small church of Madonna del Divino Amore, also known as Madonna della Cerasa and the church of Madonna delle Piagge dated 1601.

Finally don’t miss Castelleone , a small village on the top of the hills over Deruta!