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DOCUMENT CENTER
Prato is the second largest city in Tuscany and the third in central Italy (after Rome and Florence). It is situated at the heart of the region, not far from the world’s most famous cities of art: Florence (18 km., Lucca (50 km), Pisa (82 km) and Siena (79 km). Prato and its province are ideal destinations for tourists, especially young people looking for a holiday encompassing of study and avant-guard entertainment.
HIGHLIGHTS
MUSEUMS
The museums of Mural Paintings, of the Cathedral, the communal Galleries and degli Alberti, all hold important collections of history up to the artistic season of the first part of the 20th century. The “Luigi Pecci” Centre for Contemporary Art organises exhibitions and demonstrations of the most well-known artists of the avant-garde movement. An expression of the textile history of the town, the Museum of Cloth gives its visitors an interesting view of the art of weaving throughout the centuries.
THE TOWN
Prato is found in the centre of the northern area of Tuscany, principal town of a Province that consists in seven municipalities: Cantagallo, Carmignano, Montemurlo, Poggio a Caiano, Vaiano e Vernio.
It is known for its wool weaving tradition that had, since the Middle Ages, an important role for the economic and social development of the entire district and that now, with its modern factories, has been transferred to the industrial zones.
SURROUNDING AREA
The territory of the province of Prato offers the possibility of stays and itineraries in the countryside. Here, the signs of history and art left by the Etruscans, the Romans and the Longobards is visible.
The provincial territory is rich in interesting tourist places: necropolises and Etruscan findings in Comeana and Artiminio, Romanesque churches scattered throughout the Carmignanese area, the ancient abbeys in Val di Bisenzio, the medieval villages, the splendid Medici villas in Poggio a Caiano and Artiminio, the Park Museum Quinto Martini in Seano and the environmental park of Mercatale di Vernio; as well as the hilly landscape of Montalbano, rich in vineyards and olive groves, and the striking scenery of the Karstic Massif in Calvana that faces the woody spur on the right bank of the Bisenzio.
In the historical town centre the Castle Dell’Imperatore, the Cathedral, the Municipal Palazzo, the Basilica of Santa Maria delle Carceri, the churches of St. Francis and St. Dominic, all hold works by grand masters, such as Agnolo Gaddi, Paolo Uccello, Filippo and Filippino Lippi, Donatello and other famous artists of the 14th century and the Renaissance.
