Matelica is a (municipality) of the
Province of Macerata in the
Italian region of
Marche. Located about southwest of
Ancona and west of
Macerata, it extends over an area of .
Geography
Matelica lies in an ample valley where the Braccano creek joins the
Esino river, dominated by the town from an eastern ravine. The valley, roughly in the north–south direction, is delimited on the east and west sides by
Apennines sub-ranges, whose highest peaks are respectively Mount Gemmo at and
Mount San Vicino at , compared to the above sea-level of the city centre.
Matelica borders on the following municipalities:
Apiro,
Castelraimondo
Castelraimondo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Macerata in the Italy, Italian region Marche, located about southwest of Ancona and about southwest of Macerata.
Castelraimondo borders the following municipalities: Camerino, Fiu ...
,
Cerreto d'Esi,
Esanatoglia,
Fabriano,
Fiuminata,
Gagliole,
Poggio San Vicino,
San Severino Marche.
Climate
The climate is dictated by the
Apennines and, to a lesser extent, by the temperate
Adriatic Sea on the east. Consequently, Matelica enjoys a somewhat continental climate with cool winters and hot, dry summers. In winter, Matelica occasionally experiences sub-zero temperatures and snowfall between December and February. Highest summer temperatures can be well above in July and August. In keeping with the layout of the valley, the dominant winds are along the north–south direction, those from the south being more frequent but weaker than those from the north.
History
The first human settlements in the area can be traced to the
Umbri
The Umbri were an Italic peoples, Italic people of ancient Italy. A region called Umbria still exists and is now occupied by Italian speakers. It is somewhat smaller than the Regio VI Umbria, ancient Umbria.
Most ancient Umbrian cities were sett ...
and
Picentes
The Picentes or Piceni or Picentini were an ancient Italic peoples, Italic people who lived from the 9th to the 3rd century BC in the area between the Foglia and Aterno rivers, bordered to the west by the Apennines and to the east by the Adriatic ...
and date back to the 1st millennium BC. Later, under Roman rule, Matelica became a
municipium (70 BC). Starting from the 5th century AD, it was seat of a bishop, who for a while remained the only authority, after the fall of the
Western Roman Empire
In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...
. The town was then annexed to the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...
(552). Destroyed by the
Lombards in 578, it was subsequently joined to the
bishopric of Camerino.
[The present ]cathedral
A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...
dates from much later: a 15th-century church, it was elevated in 1785, when the bishopric was restored. From the 9th century, Matelica was under the indirect rule of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
(while belonging formally to the
Papal States), then becoming a free municipality in 1160. In 1174, it was again obliterated, this time by the army of
Christian I (Archbishop of Mainz). Since then, Matelica remained part of the
Papal States (albeit at times under an independent Governor), until the
Italian unification (1861), save for the brief Napoleonic occupation.
Main sights
The old part of town presents an urban structure dating largely from the Middle Ages, and is punctuated by several palazzi and churches from different periods.
Sights in the town include:
*
Matelica Cathedral
*
Church of Sant'Agostino (14th century)
*
Church of San Francesco (1246-1260, façade from the 18th century)
*
Church of Santa Maria Maddalena
*
Chiesa del Suffragio
*
San Filippo, Matelica (17th century)
*Communal palace
*Governor Palace and Civic Tower
*Piersanti Museum, housing a collection of artworks.
*Palazzo Pettinelli
Twin towns
*
Las Rosas, Argentina
References and notes
External links
Official website
{{Authority control