What is Corciano known for?

The Gonfalone della Peste, painted by Benedetto Bonfigli in 1472 with the town itself shown at the foot of the Madonna's cloak. Saint Francis stopped here in 1223 on his way back from Lent on Isola Maggiore; the Chiesa di San Francesco was built in memory. Carries the bread-town designation; the August Agosto Corcianese festa fills the piazze with choirs and tables of local pane.

When is the best time to visit Corciano?

Apr–Oct. April through June and September into October are the dependable months. The town is close enough to Perugia to absorb day trips without losing its own quiet at evening. July and August are warm but the walls hold shade well, and the Agosto Corcianese, the annual cultural festival of theatre and music in the piazze, runs through the last two weeks of August. November through March is quiet; the museums keep reduced hours and the bread-town bakeries on Via Cornelio carry the social weight of the season. Spring opens with green hills sloping down to Lake Trasimeno on the western horizon.

Corciano is a comune in the province of Perugia, Umbria region of Italy, about 14 kilometers from Perugia.

How do I get to Corciano?

From Perugia, Corciano is roughly 14 km by road.

Umbria · Perugia

Corciano

A walled medieval castello eight kilometers west of Perugia, where Saint Francis stopped on his way back from Isola Maggiore in 1223.

Known for

BONFIGLI'S BANNER
The Gonfalone della Peste, painted by Benedetto Bonfigli in 1472 with the town itself shown at the foot of the Madonna's cloak.
FRANCIS PASSED
Saint Francis stopped here in 1223 on his way back from Lent on Isola Maggiore; the Chiesa di San Francesco was built in memory.
CITTÀ DEL PANE
Carries the bread-town designation; the August Agosto Corcianese festa fills the piazze with choirs and tables of local pane.

When to visit

Best · Apr–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

The festa: Michele, 8 May

Why come

Corciano stands on a low hill eight kilometers west of Perugia, the medieval walls intact and the gate towers still framing the entrance to the centro storico. The first traces of settlement go back to the Neolithic; the Etruscans were here in the fourth century BC, then the Romans. The Castrum Corcianum appears in a 1136 bull by Pope Innocent II among the possessions of the bishop of Perugia.

Saint Francis stopped here in 1223 on his way back from Isola Maggiore, where he had spent Lent in fasting; the Chiesa di San Francesco was built in memory of his passing. The Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta on the main square holds the Gonfalone della Peste, painted by Benedetto Bonfigli in 1472, with the merciful Madonna sheltering Corciano's citizens under her cloak: the town itself is visible at the bottom of the panel. Porta Santa Maria, the main gate tower, was begun in 1482. The Festival dei Cori in August fills the piazze with choirs from across Umbria.

The Sunday letter

We haven’t written Corciano’s letter yet.

One town every Sunday, with the photo, the food, the festa. Be there when this one comes up. Free, by Peter & Sophia from Pietrasanta.

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What to see

Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta
Thirteenth-century main parish church near the main square, redone in neoclassical style in 1870, holding the Gonfalone della Peste by Bonfigli.
Gonfalone della Peste
Processional banner painted by Benedetto Bonfigli in 1472, with the Madonna sheltering Corciano's citizens; the town is shown at the foot of the panel.
Porta Santa Maria
Main gate tower of the medieval walls, begun in 1482 at the northern entrance to the centro storico.
Palazzo dei Priori
Medieval communal palace on Piazza Coragino, alongside the Palazzo del Capitano del Popolo, the civic centre of the old commune.
Chiesa di San Francesco
Gothic former Franciscan church now a museum, built in memory of Francis's passage through Corciano in 1223.
Piazza Coragino
Main square with a sixteenth-century well at its centre, framed by the Palazzo dei Priori and the parish church.

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Living here

Population 21,535
Commuter belti
Pharmacy in town
High school within a 30-minute drive
Nearest airport Ancona / Pescara, 1 h 50 min drive
Regional capital Perugia, 16 min drive

Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources

Recognised as

The numbers

Elevation: 408 m
Population: 21,535
Surface area: 63.72 km²

On the map

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These figures were compiled from public directories — ISTAT, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata — and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.

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