Palazzo del Podestà

Why it matters

The Palazzo del Podestà occupies the summit of Panicale's historic centre. Built in the fourteenth century, the Gothic palace combines two-light windows with a bell tower known locally as the Campanone. Its architecture reflects the civic institutions that governed the town.

What to notice

The upper storey has paired, pointed-arch windows divided by slender colonnettes. The palace faces Piazza Masolino, alongside the collegiate church and a belvedere above the descent toward Lake Trasimeno. The square takes its name from the painter Masolino da Panicale, whose birthplace is debated.

Context and history

The fourteenth-century palace served the podestà, a magistrate appointed to govern the commune, and housed civic offices and the communal archive. It is attributed in some accounts to Lombard-Gothic building masters, though that attribution is not conclusive. The historical and notarial archive remains associated with the building, preserving records of the commune's rights and civic history.