Fermignano is a town of around eight thousand people on the Metauro river, a few kilometres from Urbino. It grew up around a ford and a bridge, and the best way to understand it is to start right there.
The bridge and the tower
The so-called Roman bridge, with three stone arches, links the centre to the south bank of the Metauro. Tradition says it is Roman; the structure you see today is largely medieval, with later restorations and a small shrine added in the 1400s, in the days of Federico da Montefeltro. Beside it rises the medieval tower, about 24 metres high and possibly built on older foundations. Together with the bridge it controlled the river crossing, collected tolls and defended the town. It is Fermignano's symbol.
The paper mill and the wool mill
Right next to the tower, a paper mill was opened in 1408, one of the first in Le Marche after Fabriano's. In 1507 Duke Guidobaldo I gave it to the Cappella Musicale of Urbino; later the building became a wool mill. The power of the Metauro made Fermignano a small industrial centre for centuries, and the old mill's turbines have been brought back into use to generate hydroelectric power.
Bramante's home town
Donato Bramante, the architect who designed the new St Peter's in Rome and the Tempietto of San Pietro in Montorio, was born here in 1444. The town remembers him with a library and a contemporary art gallery that bear his name. Tradition places his birth around Monte Asdrualdo, in the hills above the town.
Hasdrubal and the Metauro
The name Monte Asdrualdo itself recalls another story. In 207 BC, along the Metauro, the Romans defeated the Carthaginian army led by Hasdrubal, Hannibal's brother. Exactly where the battle was fought is still debated, but as early as the 1400s the historian Flavio Biondo linked the hill to the Carthaginian general.
More moments in history
- In 1502 Cesare Borgia camped at Fermignano before marching on Urbino.
- In 1607 Duke Francesco Maria II della Rovere granted the town its own council, the independence still celebrated with the Palio della Rana.
- In 1818, after a long dispute with Urbino, Fermignano became a municipality in its own right.
A one-hour walk
Start at the bridge and the tower, walk up the main street to the Mascherone fountain, once a horse trough, and look back at the town from the far bank of the river for the best photo. Then come to us for lunch: we're on Via Santa Caterina da Siena, a short walk from the centre.
