Cortona
The religious mysticism
The religious life of Cortona has been strongly marked by three individuals who wrote histories of the city:
To St. Francis is attributed the realization of the splendid
Convent delle Celle (html file), located near a creek in a valley by Cortona.
The relationship that links Saint Margherita to the city is very different.
Her body is preserved in a sanctuary named for her.
The Saint embodies the spirituality found by a woman who was nobleman's mistress for nine years.
In 1274, he became fatally ill.
There is an oak tree where she found the dead body of her lover that is said to be the site of her conversion.
At the sight of her dead companion she saw the disease as a sign from God, publicly confessed to the affair, and became a Franciscan tertiary in 1277. Founded a convent and hospital. Labored for herself, her son, and those in worse need than herself, and though the poorest sought her help and advice, the calumny of her earlier life followed her the rest of her days (by "The Patron Saints Index".
In Rome next to the Corsini gallery, you can seen the beautiful painting by Marco Benefial that pictures the scene described above.
It is very interesting to cross Via San Margherita, a long panoramic road that goes from Piazza Garibaldi up to the Basilica.
Along the road are fifteen religious kiosks with mosaics by Gino Severini that function as Stations of the Cross.
Also along the way it is possible to see the ancient Porta Berarda, the door by which, according to the legend, the Saint entered Cortona for the first time.
Cardinal Silvio Passerini represents the best example of the Renaissance man, linked as he was to Pope Leo X, who was Giovanni De' Medici, a child of Lorenzo.
To the Cardinal are attributed many restorations, the construction of various villas, and the construction of the "Palazzone," more commonly known as the Palazzo Passerini, or the Palazzo del Popolo (Palace of the People).
There are many monasteries or convents present in the territory of Cortona.
Among these we note the monastery of the Clarisse of Saint Chiara, who have been present without interruption since 1225.
There are also many churches of notable interest including the Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Grazie (Church of Saint Mary of the Graces) situated along the road between Camucia and Cortona.
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