Orvinio

What to see?

Among the most interesting places in the area, the orchid garden undoubtedly represents one of the most interesting attractions. Here, from May to the end of July, you can admire several species of spontaneous orchids with the highest concentration in the Monti Lucretili Park. The village is accessed through an arch and the historic centre is protected by a perimetral wall with some defence towers and in rich in Renaissance buildings. The Castle of the Marquises Malvezzi-Campeggi, dominates the village. Built around the year 1000, it was enlarged in the 16th century by the Orsini. Today it has been converted into a residential villa that hosts events of various kinds. Religious tourism represents a great resource for the municipality, also due to the large number of churches present in the area and the history they hide. First among all, the church of Santa Maria di Vallebona where, according to a legend, a shepherd heard a cry while cutting the ivy and, looking at his sickle, he saw it was stained with blood. Peering through the leaves he saw the image of Our Lady wounded on one lip. The shepherd took the image to the church of San Nicola in Orvinio but the day after he noticed that the image had returned to Vallebona, where it was found. The faithful then raised funds to build a church right there, probably on the ruins of an old castle. The church has a rectangular plan with a simple hut roof and a single nave with an altar on each side. The stone portal is surmounted by a triangular tympanum and flanked by square windows. Inside visitors can admire some canvases and frescoes by Vincenzo Manenti and other local workers. Another important site is represented by the Abbey of Santa Maria del Piano, that various hypotheses seem to attribute to the Carolingian period, when Charlemagne defeated the Saracens in these lands. The abbey was probably built to thank the Divine Providence but there are no certain sources that confirm this. The church of Santa Maria dei Raccomandati is located in the upper part of the village and was built in 1582 during the lordship of Baron Muti. Here, during the Napoleonic domination, the French soldiers found refuge, but the fires they lit to warm up caused great damage to the walls. However. the most important church for the local population is the parish church of San Nicola di Bari built on an octagonal plan. At the base of the bell tower, two meters high from the ground, stands a niche containing an ancient marble sculpture, probably coming from the old demolished church and reproducing the miniature facade of a Christian Temple, which perhaps had the function of ciborium. Inside, the altar of San Rocco enriched by a 19th-century wooden statue of the Saint is the most interesting element of the church.