Overview
From the historic centre of Perugia, past the mediaeval walls at Porta Romana, externally decorated with two elegant 15th-century niches inspired by Etruscan art, a few steps southwards lead to the foot of the ancient basilica of St. Peter's, one of the city's most striking places of worship.
Various objects of mediaeval and Renaissance art embellish the interior of the church: it is impossible not to mention, among the other masterpieces, the meticulously inlaid 16th-century wooden choir, between the high altar and the apse, and the five small paintings by Perugino hanging on the walls of the sacristy.
All around the main basilica is a monastery, complete with porticoed cloisters and dominated by a fine bell tower. St. Peter's complex includes a library, an archive, a museum section and a mediaeval botanical garden, created in what used to be the monks' fish market, where it is possible to admire Umbrian as well as exotic plants and flowers, depending on the season. A place to visit (reservation required), with the calm and attention required by such a vast and historically rich monument.
