Assisi

Assisi, a medieval hill town in Umbria, is known as the home town of San Francesco, the patron saint of Italy. Assisi is the birthplace of the Franciscan order and also holds important medieval art works. The Saint Francis Basilica holds the tomb of Saint Francis and is a popular tourist and pilgrimage destination. The two-story basilica consists of an upper church and a lower church. The crypt in the lower church was added in 1818 when the tomb of St. Francis was opened. The basilica is one of the greatest repositories of Early Renaissance fresco painting in Italy. Saint Francis is buried in the lower church, while the upper church has frescoes representing episodes from the life of St. Francis by Giotto and his followers, and others depicting scenes of the Old and New Testaments by Cimabue, his pupils, and Jacopo Torriti. Earthquakes on September 26, 1997, seriously damaged the basilica, collapsing several vaulted ceilings of the upper church and destroying frescoes by Cimabue and others. The town has light manufacturing industries and derives considerable income from pilgrims and tourists.