Palazzo Baldeschi Cennini

(14th to 16th century) 

The plaque at number 10, Via Baldo (to the right of the present palace) records that this was the residence of the famous scholar Baldo degli Ubaldi.  (He died in 1400, and the plaque was mounted in 1900, on the 500th anniversary of his death).  A document dated 1361 records his residence here, with his brothers Pietro and Angelo.  In 1368, he extended this house here after buying the adjacent property that faced the piazza.

The descendants of Baldo continued to buy adjoining properties throughout the 15th century and thereby became the owners of an "island" bounded by what are now Corso Vannucci, Via Baldo, Via dello Struzzo, Via Baglioni and Via Danzetta.  Much of this property was rented out as a commercial investment.

The original house in Via Baldo has been heavily restored.  However, it is still possible to see the windows with circular discs in the spandrels that Giugliotto degli Ubaldi commissioned (possibly from Agostino di Duccio) in the 1470s (in Via Baldo, in the top two storeys near the junction with Via dello Struzzo).  The arms of the Ubaldi can be seen above the nearby portal at number 10 Via Baldo.

Pietro Baldeschi commissioned Ludovico Scalza to work on these properties in 1575, and this was probably the point at which thethe components of the present palace were adapted to form a single residence.  (Ludovico Scalza had probably designed what is now known as Palazzo Bonucci Baldeschi for Pietro's relative, Filippo Baldeschi in 1560).

The palace now belongs to the Cassa di Risparmio di Perugia and houses a small art collection.  It sometimes hosts exhibitions: on such occasions, it is possible to admire the splendid interior.

Return to Walk VII.