spoleto is umbria's most compelling town, remarkable for its extremely pretty position and several of italy's most ancient romanesque churches. for several centuries it was among the most influential of italian towns, the former capital of one of the lombards' three italian dukedoms, which at one time stretched as far as rome. barbarossa flattened the city in 1155, and in 1499 the nineteen-year-old lucrezia borgia was appointed governess by her father, pope alexander vi.
spoleto's lower town, where you arrive, was badly damaged by world war ii bombing, and doesn't hold much of interest, so it's best to take a bus straight to the upper town.
there's no single, central piazza, but the place to head for is piazza libertà, site of a much-restored first-century roman theatre. the adjoining piazza della fontana has more roman remains, best the arco di druso, built to honour the minor campaign victories of drusus, son of tiberius. the homely piazza del mercato, beyond, is a fine opportunity to take in some streetlife, and from there it's a short walk to the duomo, whose facade of restrained elegance is one of the most memorable in the region.
inside, various baroque embellishments are eclipsed by the superlative apse frescoes of the fifteenth-century florentine artist fra' lippo lippi, dominated by his final masterpiece, a coronation of the virgin. he died shortly after their completion (amid rumours that he was poisoned for seducing the daughter of a local noble family) and was interred here in a tomb designed by his son, filippino.
you should also take the short walk out to the ponte delle torri, a picture-postcard favourite, and an astonishing piece of medieval engineering, best seen as part of a circular walk around the base of the rocca – everyone's idea of a cartoon castle, with towers, crenellations and sheer walls; the church of san pietro, 1km or so beyond the bridge on a hillside, is also worth the walk for the splendid sculptures on its facade, among the best romanesque carvings in umbria.
the basilica of s.salvatore, the most ancient church in spoleto, is an interesting monument whose origins go back to the the iv - v century.

the ornaments of the doors and the windows were imitated and inspired other constructions in the same area, as it is the case for the small temple of clitunno