Piazza Signorelli
Stand in the middle of Piazza Signorelli and you're standing on the ghost of an ancient forum — the exact point where Roman Cortona's two main streets crossed, and where public life has gathered, in one form or another, ever since. The piazza is named for Luca Signorelli, the Renaissance painter born here around 1450, whose statue now occupies the center, watching the Saturday market set up around him.
The square is ringed by serious stone buildings: Palazzo Casali on one side, Teatro Signorelli with its old grain loggia folded into its facade on another, and the flank of the Palazzo Comunale closing the view. Cafés open onto the pavement, and on warm evenings musicians tend to appear.
💛 What travellers fall for
Regulars will tell you: come Saturday morning when the market takes over, then stay for coffee at one of the pavement tables after the stalls clear. Keep an eye out for a cat named Guru, who has apparently claimed the café circuit as his own territory. The evening hours in summer, when bands set up and the stone holds the day's warmth, are worth planning around.
The story behind Piazza Signorelli
The ground beneath Piazza Signorelli was already a civic center before the medieval town grew up around it — this was the intersection of the Roman cardo and decumanus, the forum's natural home. The Casali family, who ruled Cortona from 1325 to 1409, built Palazzo Casali here in the 1200s, though the facade you see today dates to the 18th century. That building now houses MAEC and the city's historical archive.
Teatro Signorelli came much later, inaugurated in 1854, its architects incorporating the existing Logge del Grano — the old grain-trading arcade — into its exterior. The piazza's name honors Luca Signorelli (c. 1450–1523), who studied under Piero della Francesca, painted frescoes for Orvieto Cathedral, and contributed work to the Sistine Chapel.
Good to know
Cortona has no direct train stop — alight at Camucia-Cortona station and take the local bus or a taxi up. The piazza itself is open at all hours. If you're visiting MAEC inside Palazzo Casali, note that winter hours are Friday–Sunday only (November through March, with a holiday exception).
April through October is the most comfortable window — spring and early autumn bring mild temperatures around 18–27°C and manageable rainfall, while June through August stays dry and sunny, with August afternoons pushing toward 31°C. Winter is genuinely cold, with occasional snow, but the piazza in January has a quiet that the warmer months don't offer.
Where is Piazza Signorelli?
Location
- In Cortona
- 43.2756, 11.9880
- Open in Google Maps
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