Ducal Palace

Splendid Renaissance court, but also a fortified residence with respect to the underlying Mercatale plan, reachable through the great helical ramp designed by Francesco di Giorgio Martini (ramp that connected the Montefeltresca residence with the stables of the date and the outside of the walls), the grandiose 'palace in the form of a city' does not need presentation so much is its notoriety. Wanted by Federico da Montefeltro who initially entrusted the work (around the middle of the fifteenth century) to the Florentine Maso di Bartolomeo who incorporated into the new building the ancient palace called the Jole, is mainly the work of the famous Dalmatian architect Luciano Laurana who gave the design of the splendid courtyard of honor and the staircase and which raised the connecting bodies with the old Castellare, also providing the beautiful facade of the Torricini.

When Laurana left Urbino in 1472, Francesco di Giorgio Martini replaced it, bringing the work almost to completion, also providing for the definition of the decorative part of the wing facade that looks towards the interior of the city, benefiting for the execution of the frames of portals and windows of the Milanese stonemason-sculptor Ambrogio Barocci, the same to whom we owe the main ornamentation of the great halls and internal halls. After the death of Duke Federico (1482) the grandiose construction was interrupted and only in the first half of the sixteenth century the architect Girolamo Genga added the second floor, suppressing the crenellation and not unfortunately altering the original appearance of the entire building today of the Marche National Gallery.

"It is normal that everyone tends to immediately dedicate their interest to the Palazzo Ducale.The exterior aspect of the imposing structure suggests the care with which the project was carried out, following the natural progress of the terrain with its differences in height. with the two towers - the Torricini for the urbinati- and the overlapping balconies give an unmistakable touch to the building.The entrance is instead positioned on the façade that opens onto the Piazza named after the Duca Federico.As soon after the great travertine you find yourself in the courtyard Honor where a portico develops along the quadrangular perimeter.The observer will immediately understand that we are faced with a clever play of geometry, rhythm and proportion.The combination of bricks with stone offers color combinations with refined taste. The writings engraved in the double cornice are a clear celebratory act: "Federico Duca di Urbino, Count of Montefeltro and Casteldurante, Confaloniere della Santa Roman church and Commander of the Italic Confederation, he built this house raised from the foundations for his glory and of the posterity / several times he fought in the war, six times he assembled the ranks, eight times he put the enemy to flight. winner of all battles, he increased his dominion. His justice, clemency, liberality and devotion equaled and honored his victories with peace. "Once, when he had not yet begun the 16th century expansion that led to the presence of the two upper bodies, backward from the original body, the courtyard of the monolithic columns and the Corinthian capitals, had even greater architectural balance, perfection and airiness.From the ground floor it is possible to enter the basements where there are the kitchens, the neviera for the preservation of food and ovens; services that were necessary for the life of the court These environments have been opened to the public quite recently and give more information on the less official, more utilitarian aspects of Renaissance everyday life ... So the basements are an integral part of the engineering spirit that has made possible this building Before climbing the steps of the staircase leading to the main floor is worth it is worth stopping for a few minutes at the Courtyard of Honor and entering the room that contained the Library of the Duke. Of what Baldassarre Castiglione described as the "supreme excellence of the great palace" remains only the atmosphere, the decoration of the ceiling with the black stone eagle. The rare Greek, Latin and Hebrew books that lined the room were in fact integrated into the Vatican Library after the passage to the Papal State in the seventeenth century. In the rooms adjacent to the Library there are some works by Ambrogio Barocci, These are some reliefs representing ships, machines and tools. Once these works adorned the backrests of the seats that run along the two wing facades in the area of ​​the entrance to the building. Also on the ground floor, between the courtyard of honor and Piazza Rinascimento we find the Archaeological Museum: five rooms collect a series of ancient inscriptions, re-proposing what once represented the "lapidary" created in the eighteenth century by Cardinal Giovan Francesco Stoppani. Along the stairs leading to the first floor there is an almost natural itinerary to make contact with the beauties of the ducal residence. The first rooms that meet are the oldest heart of the structure. In short you enter the "new court", you pass the guest rooms and you get to the apartment of the duke, where you will meet some of the most beautiful things visible in what is now the Galleria Nazionale delle Marche. We quickly follow the succession of rooms and rooms, with their contents. The Hall of Audiences groups two splendid masterpieces by Piero della Francesca (1415/20 - 1492): the "Madonna di Senigallia", a name that indicates the city where the painting was present until 1917, and the "Flagellation". The latter was originally located in the cathedral of Urbino, and is by far one of the most important and most enigmatic works by the artist of Sansepolcro. There are many hypotheses on the characters that are depicted and so many symbolic readings that have aroused the work. The traditional interpretation identifies in the young blond, in the middle, the half-brother of Federico, Oddantonio, who died the victim of the conspiracy of 1444, portrayed between the two bad advisers. A more recent analysis reads in the left-hand portion of the painting the representation of the difficulties of the Church, while on the right the blond young man would be Buonconte, son of Federico, who died of the plague.

Behind the main balcony located between the Torricini we find a spectacular and collected environment: the Studiolo del Duca. Here the work of inlaying is amazing, the symbology is so rich as to oblige the visitor to walk with the centimeter-by-inch sgurado the walls, so as not to lose its secrets. The study had to be the place of recollection and rest of the "warrior" Federico. What is illustrated on the walls can be interpreted as the symbolic "summa" of the duke's ideal life, with astronomy, music, the arts, books, and architecture that represent their interests. The inlays were made in the Florentine workshop Baccio Pontelli probably designed by Francesco di Giorgio Martini. In the upper part of the study there were 28 portraits of "illustrious men" arranged on two orders, by Piero Berruegete and Giusto di Gand. Today, part of the originals, subtracted in 1632, can be found in the Louvre Museum in Paris. The ceiling is instead due to the skill of Giuliano da Maiano and his Florentine workshop. Using the spiral staircase of the right Torricino you can go downstairs and visit two small and symbolic environments: the "Cappellina del Perdono" and the "Tempietto delle Muse". A combination that seems to exalt the Christian divinity and classical mythological figures in the same way. The former has as its ornament the vault enriched with cherubim, the second includes Apollo and the Muses. Eight tablets made by Giovanni Santi, father of Raphael, and Timoteo Viti. The works are today in the Galleria Corsini of Florence.
The last room of the Appartamento del Duca is the "Sala degli Angeli", named after the friezes by Domenico Rosselli (1439 - 1498) that adorn the fireplace in the center of the room. The lunettes and the inlaid doors enrich this environment that holds two extremely famous paintings all over the world such as the "Ideal City" and the "Desecration of the Host". There is ample documentation of this work. It was created by Paolo Uccello between 1465 and 1468 for the Oratorio della Confraternita del Corpus Domini in Urbino. With a very modern approach, almost a "story board", the author narrates in six episodes the alleged miracle advent in Paris in 1290.
Every certainty instead vanishes in front of the "Ideal City". The painting comes from the Monastery of Santa Chiara di Urbino, but its original function is not known nor the author.
Criticism has ranged in the attributions going from Piero della Francesca to Frà Carnevale, then involving architects Luciano Laurana, Francesco di Giorgio Martini and Luciano Bramante.
To date there are no safe paternity for this scene of great silence and solemnity. The many mysteries that surround the city from the brilliant perspective impact have made the painting even more fascinating, consecrating it as an emblem of the Italian Renaissance.
After the visit to the Appartamento del Duca, the visitor still has several rooms available to complete the first floor of the building. The "Hall of Honor", also called "Salone del Trono", is very wide because of the papal throne during the domination of the Papal State (1631 - 1861). The "Sala delle Veglie", which bears the design signature of Francesco di Giorgio martini, leads to the rooms that make up the Duchess's apartment. Here we will still find wonderful works of art, including the "Portrait of a Gentlewoman", painting by Raphael also known as "La Muta", which is flanked by the "Santa Caterina d'Alessandria", a youth work by the painter of Urbino.
The Chamber of the Duchess, the Wardrobe and the Prayer Room close the apartment. The second floor of the Palace moves us to another era, marks the idelae passage from Montefeltro to Della Rovere. The expansion was in fact wanted by Guidubaldo II Della Rovere, incorporating the original battlements of the Palace, according to the project which was commissioned by the architect Gerolamo Genga. Many works of art that the visitor can admire in this further portion of the Galleria Nazionale delle Marche. "

Various Authors Urbino Art Guide, Edizioni l'Alfiere, 2001 Villa Verucchio (Rn)