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WHAT TO SEE |
  
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| Just a stone's throw away is a really fascinating piece of history: the Abbey of Santa Maria in Castagnola at Chiaravalle. It is one of the three monasteries founded by the Cistercians of Clairvaux, dating back to the year 1126. More than its general architectural lines, we are struck by the church and its fine portal with a great rose topped by a mullioned window with two lights. The wealth of artistic, historic and architectural riches in the Marches is documented by the fact that this region, together with Latium, Tuscany and Umbria, possesses the highest concentration of works of art in the world. So there is no lack of choice for tourists in search of culture. In this central area there is one of the many fortresses that are scattered around the territory of the Marches. The Fortress of Offagna is exquisitely built, on a square plan, with towers and a keep, the whole creating a grand scenic effect. Built by the people of Ancona in the middle of the fifteenth century, it was partly restored in 1925. Visitors can not only appreciate a monument of extraordinary, intrinsic importance, but also admire a fine panorama of the hills all around. On the subject of what culture has to offer tourists, the Teatro di Polverigi has become an established leader in everything new that emerges in the avant-garde theatre. By setting up functional spaces and using villas, the Polverigi Festival has launched directors and actors, cabaret entertainers and comics, mimes and variety artists who have risen to important positions on the nationwide scene. These events have been well received by the most discerning Italian critics and have proposed pleasant and unusual ways of entertaining. Osimo and Castelfidardo are historic town which both deserve a visit: the former for its Cathedral (eighth century, later remodelled) which is of great scenic beauty, for other fine churches and the Fonte Magna, a nymphaeum dating back to the first century A.D.. Castelfidardo's claim to fame is more recent: a battle was fought there in 1860 between the Piedmontese and the Pope's army, commemorated by a great sculpture by Vito Pardo showing General Cialdini on horseback as he leads his troops in the attack. Finally, a few suggestions for "country picnics" or "old time" lunches: Monte San Vito, Camerata, Picena, Camerano and Agugliano all have local specialities to offer, healthy fresh air and landscapes that will not easily be forgotten.
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