Cingoli is a town and comune of the Marches, Italy, in the province of Macerata, about by road from the town of Macerata. It is the birthplace of Pope Pius VIII. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful villages of Italy").

History

The town occupies the site of the ancient Cingulum, a town of Picenum, founded and strongly fortified by Julius Caesar's lieutenant Titus Labienus (probably on the site of an earlier village) in 63BCE at his own expense. Its lofty position at an elevation of about made it of some importance in the civil wars, but otherwise little is heard of it. Under the Roman Empire it was a municipium.

Main sights

Cingoli is also known as the "Balcony of Marche" ("Il Balcone delle Marche") because of its belvedere (viewpoint) from which, on a clear day, the sight may encompass all of the Marche and further across the Adriatic Sea to the Croatian mountain tops.

Religious buildings

• Cingoli Cathedral (Concattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta)

• Collegiate church of Sant'Esuperanzio, Cingoli (Collegiata di Sant'Esuperanzio): Gothic church

• Santuario di Santa Sperandia

• San Benedetto

• San Francesco

• San Filippo Neri

• San Giacomo

• San Girolamo

• San Nicolò

• Santo Spirito

• Santa Caterina d'Alessandria

• San Domenico

Secular buildings

• Palazzo municipale

• Biblioteca Comunale ″Ascariana″

Museums

• Pinacoteca comunale "D. Stefanucci" named after Donatello Stefanucci

• Museo archeologico statale di Cingoli

• Museo del Lago

• Museo del Sidecar

Sport

Cingoli has been host to the Italian Sidecarcross Grand Prix a number times and have hosted on 16 May 2010.

Twin towns — sister cities

Cingoli is twinned with:

• Aprilia, Lazio, Italy (2004)

References

External links

• Cingoli news

• Cingoli sport

• History of Cingoli: http://www.antiqui.it/cingoli.htm