Diocesan Museum in Cortona
A collection of sacred art with masterpieces by Fra Angelico and Luca Signorelli
The Diocesan Museum in Cortona brings together masterpieces coming from the churches and convents throughout Cortona and its dioceses and is housed in the 16th century Confraternity of Jesus, built from two overlapping churches: the upper Church of Jesus, with a splendid wooden roof, and the lower oratory, frescoed in 1555 by Cristofano Gheradi, known as Il Doceno, after a design by Giorgio Vasari and depicting scenes from the Old and New Testaments.
The collection celebrates above all Luca Signorelli, born and bred in Cortona, with two signed works and other paintings executed by the master in collaboration with his workshop, including the Lamentation of Christ and the Communion of the Apostles.
Among the works on display are masterpieces by Fra Angelico, including the Annunciation and a polyptych with the Madonna and Saints, as well as the Crucifixion by Lorenzetti, Sassetta’s Triptych, the Assumption by Bartolomeo della Gatta, the Ecstasy of Saint Margaret by Crespi, the Vagnucci Reliquary and the Parato Passerini, an extraordinary vestment used in pontifical rites made in the 1500s for cardinal Silvio Passerini using the designs of Raffaellino del Garbo and Andrea del Sarto.
Accessibility information: cortonamuseo.it
