Porta San Pietro
(13th - 15th centuries)
Inner Gate
The inner part dates to the extension of the walls of Perugia in the 13th
century. It was originally known as Due Porte because it originally had two arches:
The arch on the left, was closed at some time in the 13th century (although traces of it can still be seen) led to what is now Via Benedetto Bonfigli. This was originally called Via Romana and was the main road to Rome until 1843, when Borgo San Pietro was widened and paved.
The arch on the right, which still survives, led to Borgo San Pietro. This road was re-named Borgo XX Giugno in memory of the disastrous events of 20th June 1859, when the Swiss guards of the papal army massacred Perugian supporters of the Risorgimento outside the gate. An inscription on the outer face of the inner gate marks the thirtieth anniversary of this massacre.
Cappella di San Giacomo (1285)
The closure of the left arch allowed the
construction behind it of the Cappella di San Giacomo (1285), which
presumably served as a wayside chapel for pilgrims. It belonged to the
Abbazia di San Pietro until 1399. It then passed to passed to the Collegio del Cambio (along with the nearby Ospedale di San Giacomo - see Walk IV). The Confraternita di San Pietro Apostolo used the chapel for a period until 1579, when it moved to a new oratory near Santa Maria di Colle (see Walk IV).
The chapel was restored in 1502, when the present portal was added (as recorded
in the inscription on its architrave), and again in 1765.
Outer Arches
Agostino di Duccio and Polidoro di Stefano built the outer gate (1475-81), which is one of the finest of the Italian Renaissance. The design betrays the influence of Leon Battista Alberti’s slightly Malatesta Temple, Rimini (ca. 1450), in which Agostino di Duccio had worked as a sculptor. It also owes a great deal to the Arco Etrusco, a debt that would have been more evident had the planned lunette above the central arch been built.
Return to Walk IV.