Marche · Pesaro e Urbino
Mercatello sul Metauro
A walled borgo in the upper Metauro, autonomous since 1235, with a pieve exempt from any bishop.
Known for
NULLIUS DIOECESIS
The Pieve Collegiata held direct dependence on the Holy See from 1180, exempt from any bishop, with jurisdiction over forty-seven churches and chapels.
MASSA TRABARIA
Medieval district that supplied roof beams for Roman and papal building, with Mercatello its administrative center from the thirteenth century.
BORGHI PIÙ BELLI
Joined the network in 2018 for the preserved medieval core, the 1235 walls and the Piazza Garibaldi-Pieve-Palazzo Comunale axis.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
The festa: Veronica Giuliani, 9 July
Why come
Mercatello sul Metauro sits in the upper Metauro valley, in the Massa Trabaria, the medieval district that supplied beams for Roman and papal building. Etruscans and then Romans held the site, where it stood between the municipia of Tiferno Metaurense and Tiferno Tiberino under the name Pieve d'Ico. The town became an autonomous commune in 1235 under a bull of Pope Gregory IX; within fifty years walls had risen around it and the name had changed to Mercatello sul Metauro.
The Pieve Collegiata dei Santi Pietro e Paolo, attested from the ninth century and rebuilt in 1363, was placed by Pope Alexander III in 1180 under direct dependence on the Holy See, exempt from any bishop, with forty-seven churches and chapels under its jurisdiction. Its current Romanesque facade was rebuilt in 1927 on the 1363 plan. The borgo joined the Borghi più belli d'Italia in 2018 for the preserved medieval core around Piazza Garibaldi.
The Sunday letter
We haven’t written Mercatello sul Metauro’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
Pieve Collegiata dei Santi Pietro e Paolo
Romanesque parish church attested from the ninth century, rebuilt in 1363, placed under direct dependence on the Holy See in 1180 with jurisdiction over forty-seven churches.
Piazza Garibaldi
Main square of the medieval borgo, faced by the pieve, the Palazzo Comunale and the seventeenth-century Palazzo Gasparini.
Mura medievali
Thirteenth-century walls built within fifty years of the 1235 charter, still defining the perimeter of the centro storico.
Convento di Santa Veronica Giuliani
Capuchin convent linked to Santa Veronica Giuliani, the Mercatello-born mystic canonized in 1839, with relics and writings preserved.
The slow-trip planner
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Living here
- Population 1,326
- Off the beaten pathi
- Pharmacy in town
- Nearest high school over ~30 minutes away
- Nearest airport Rimini, 2 h 15 min drive
- Regional capital Ancona, 2 h 33 min drive
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
The numbers
- Elevation: 429 m
- Population: 1,326
- Surface area: 68.36 km²
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.
Close by
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🎨 Borghi più belli d'Italia
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