Convento of Santissima Pietà in Farneto

The hermitage is on the summit of a hill surrounded by a farnie wood and it’s residence of the Frati Minori  of Umbria. It was given to San Francesco from the Benedictine monks of the nearby Monastery of San Giustino.

Only few traces of the ancient complex are still visible. In the XV Century San Bernardino da Siena built a new wing and in 1705 a new hospice for the shelter of the poor and beggars. A new dormitory for the monks was made in 1757 and renovated, in parts, already in 1778. In 1762, some little votive shrines were built for the via crucis along the entrance avenue and they were restored in 1904.

To the convent of  Farneto was annexed the church of di Santa Maria della Santissima Pietà, of medieval age. Above it, at the end of the XVII Century, another one was erected with the same name. Inside the church we can find copies of the triptych by Pellegrino di Giovanni and a painting of the XIII Century, depicting the Holy Mary, Baby Jesus  and some scenes from the passion, attributed to Maestro del Farneto. The original paintings  are now in the Galleria Nazionale of Umbria in Perugia. From the early period only the little chapel in the wood, built around 1300 and where San Francesco used to pray, is still there.