The city of Prato has a number of claims to fame - Tuscany's second biggest town after Florence, Italy's main textile city since medieval times, the home town of Italian football greats Christian Vieri and Paolo Rossi as well as much-loved actor Roberto Benigni, and the home of the Slow Food movement.
With its attractive 'centro storico' sitting within hexagonal walls, this fine old Tuscan town has a number of must-see sights including, unsurprisingly, the Textile Museum. There are some fine Filippo Lippi frescoes in the Cattedrale di Santo Stefano (the painter is another son of the town) and this church also has a pulpit by Donatello. Here you should also see Michelozzo's marvellous Pulpit of the Sacred Girdle.
The Palazzo Pretorio is an impressive red-brick edifice dating from the 13th century, with later Gothic additions in white stone. The white-walled Castello Imperatore has the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo and Museo di Pittura Murale, with Henry Moore's sculpture 'Square Form with Cut' out front. Also see the Museo Civico e Galleria Comunale.
See too the Centro per l'arte contemporanea Luigi Pecci, an arts centre, museum and education resource for the contemporary arts. There are important churches, including Santa Maria delle Carceri, commissioned by Lorenzo de'Medici and constructed by Giuliano da Sangallo and begun in 1484. The Church of San Fabiano dates from 1082 with a 15th century belltower, and there is the baroque monastery of San Vicenzo.
To the left you'll find a selection of hotels, to get you in the mood
- see also our full listings of Prato hotels.
