Santa Maria delle Grazie al Calcinaio

Santa Maria delle Grazie al Calcinaio sits in open countryside about a kilometre below Cortona's walls and is one of the masterpieces of Italian Renaissance architecture. Francesco di Giorgio Martini designed the cross-shaped church in 1485 around the strict geometric principles of harmony that defined late-Quattrocento taste.

The interior — bright, clean, and almost geometrically pure — is best seen in late afternoon light. A 20-minute drive from the historic centre, or a brisk walk down (the climb back up is hard). Worth the trip for serious enthusiasts of Renaissance architecture.

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A story
The church was built around an image of the Virgin that appeared in 1484 on the wall of a tanner's lime pit — the *calcinaio* — and was credited with miraculous cures. Locals raised the money for a proper church within a decade and brought in Francesco di Giorgio Martini, one of the most influential architects of the late Quattrocento, to design it.