The town had its own statute in the thirteenth century, keeping its autonomy from Perugia, the near and powerful city of which anyway it followed and shared the fate in the following centuries. In 1540 it became part of the Papal State and remained part of it until Italy was united. Since the middle of the sixteenth century, Deruta experienced a long lasting peace which corresponded with the highest splendour in majolica production and with its commercial expansion. According to the Deruta map by G. Fabretti (1800) of the sixteenth century, inside the town walls there were fifty-two functioning kilns. Since the fourteenth century, the considerable production and the competition with other ceramics centres led the Deruta potters to set up their own corporation and write their own statute, in order to safeguard the product.


The town is situated 15 Kilometres south of Perugia on a hillock overlooking the Tevere valley. The visit to the old town centre can start from Porta S. Michele Arcangelo at the sides of which there are remnants of the old walls. Once crossed the gate we find some kilns used for ceramics production, one of which dates back to the sixteenth century. On the right side there is the small square named after Biordo Michelotti, overlooked by the former church S. Michele Arcangelo. In front of it there is a polygonal base fountain built in 1848 by Eng. Fiorenzo Cherubini. Passing the fountain, we find the Consoli square, with the Town Hall, a simple building from the fourteenth century with portals and ogival double lancet windows, which was restructured and changed in 1760 by Pietro Carattoli. In the building there is the recently re-organised Picture-gallery where the “Lione Pascoli” collection and paintings by Niccolò Liberatore nicknamed l’Alunno ( the pupil) are kept. In front of the Town Hall there is the church of S. Francesco, a Gothic style church, consecrated in 1388 after being re-built after a violent earthquake that destroyed it in 1303. Near the church there is a convent, founded in 1008 by the Benedictine Monks and then handed over to the Franciscan. In this building Pope Urban IV died in 1264.The Regional Museum of Ceramics has been situated there since April 1998.

Deruta holds and promotes some important events linked to the art of ceramics. In the year 2000 from 16/9 to 30/11 an exhibition dedicated to D. Zipirovic will be held; from 10/10 to 31/12 at the Regional Museum of ceramics an exhibition of the majolica of the Industrial Museum of Rome will be held. Among the other events there are: the summer cinema review, theatre and concerts in the open “Derutestate 2000” and the closing evening of the literary award “la fenice Europa 2000” on 9th September.

For further information:
http://www.museoceramicaderuta.it

For further information:

Town Council of Deruta
Dept.of Cultural Affairs
Piazza dei Consoli ,15
Tel. 075/9711143
Fax 075/9711037

Dept. of Commerce, Handcraft and Tourism
Via Umberto I°, 11
Tel .e fax 075/9710466