Italian World Heritage Sites Trivia Quiz

Answer: Sicily

The Archaeological Area of Agrigento is also known by the (slightly inept) name Valle dei Templi (Valley of the Temples). It contains indeed several (ruins of) temples, but is situated on a ridge, not in a valley. Seven temples have been attributed to various deities, although the naming is at times controversial - most remains of the temples don't contain inscriptions, statues or paintings of the deities to whose veneration they were built.
The best preserved temple is the Temple of Concordia, built about 440 BC but turned into a Roman Catholic church in the Sixth Century AD. Other temples (for instance the temple of Heracles and the Temple of Castor and Pollux) are reduced to only a few columns.
Agrigento is a city on the south shore of the island Sicily. It was founded by Greek colonists, probably around 582 BC, under the name Akragas. The Romans gave it the present name, but during the Middle Ages and Renaissance the city was known as Girgenti, a name revived in 2016 for the historic city centre.

Answer: Apulia

Trulli are small buildings containing one simple room, built without the use of mortar. According to some sources, the local peasants built trulli in the 16th Century because of the high taxes on mortar or on housing. So whenever a tax inspector would visit the region, the peasants could easily dismantle the trulli and the inspector would have nothing to tax them on. Most trulli were built as a cone , some as a square with a domed roof. Trulli were used as shelter for cattle, as storage room or as residence for the local peasants, although inside it was very dark and It could become quite cold in the winter: trulli have no form of thermic insulation whatever. There are several villages in the region of Apulia that contain a number of trulli, but the best known town is Alberobello, about halfway between the port cities of Bari (Apulia's capital) and Brindisi. Nearby are fine olive orchards.

Answer: Umbria

Assisi is known as the hometown of Saint Francis (1181-1226). So it stands to reason that the main church in this Italian town is named after the patron saint of animals and the founder of the Friars Minor. The town on the slopes of the Mount Subasio dates back to about 1000 BC and contains still some Roman remnants, such as the temple of Minerva (later transformed into the church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva).
Despite this, UNESCO has chosen only the Basilica di San Francesco and other buildings dedicated to the town's patron saint to be the World Heritage site. These buildings include the Basilica di San Francesco (in fact two churches superimposed one over the other), the surrounding Sacro Convento, the San Damiano church (where Saint Clare of Assisi lived for some time), the Basilica Santa Maria degli Angeli outside the city centre, and the small monastery Eremo delle Carceri.
Art lovers will certainly appreciate the Upper Basilica, as it contains many frescoes by renowned early Renaissance artists as Cimabue and (possibly) Giotto. The Basilica Santa Maria degli Angeli on the other hand has a close link to the life of Saint Francis: after he had renounced all worldly possessions, he dwelled for several years in a small hut (which he built himself) next to the chapel which would become the Santa Maria. And in this very hut he died.
Assisi may be the best known city in Umbria, but it is not the capital: that is Perugia, some 30 km to the north. 

Answer: Liguria

The Cinque Terre (literally five lands) are five villages on the coast of Liguria: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore. These villages are situated on a stretch of coastline of about 3 km, a coast full of steep cliffs. People can't reach these villages by car, as the roads are too narrow and too steep.

The best way to visit these settlements is taking the train to Monterosso station and then walking the mule paths. One of the paths (the stretch between Manarola and Riomaggiore) is named the via dell'Amore ("lovers' alley") and offers some splendid romantic views. Alas, the path was closed for thorough renovation including sturdy safety measures, after a few tourists were injured in 2012. Cinque Terre lie on the coast between Genoa, the Ligurian capital, on the north side and Pisa (Tuscany) to the south. 

Answer: Campania

In 79 AD the volcano Vesuvius erupted and struck the Roman cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Stabiae and Oplontis. Within a few hours these cities and towns were buried under thick layers of hot ash and volcanic debris, and the whole area remained mostly hidden for more than 1500 years.
Some early excavations were done between the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Centuries, but it was only in 1863 that scientifically documented research started on a greater scale. Giuseppe Fiorelli, who led the 1863 excavations, also introduced a method to preserve the remains of the victims (their bodies were annihilated, but the ashes still had capsules showing the body outline of the victims).
Several public buildings (temples, the baths, the amphitheatre) as well as private houses have been excavated and are shown to the public. Alas, the exposure to the weather and to a vast stream of tourists has made the site very vulnerable, and the UNESCO considers placing the site on the "endangered" list.
Pompeii is situated about 25 km southeast of Naples, in the region Campania.
Other World Heritage sites in Campania include Naples and the Amalfi Coast.

Answer: Piemonte

The House of Savoy was a noble family that settled in the Alps around 1000 AD, in the region Savoye that is now part of France. Gradually this family gained control over the north-western part of what is nowadays Italy. The Counts of Savoy were in 1416 promoted to Dukes, and from 1713 onwards they ruled as kings over Sicily (up till 1720, then swapped for Sardinia). The eighth king of Sardinia, Victor Emmanuel II, started the reunification of Italy and became the first Italian king in 1861.
Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy between 1553 and 1580, moved the capital of Savoy to Turin and ordered a dozen of palaces built in and around Turin (nowadays the capital of Piemonte). These palaces in Baroque style were placed on the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites in 1997. Examples include the Palazzo Reale, the Palazzo Carignano, the Reggia di Venaria Reale and the castle of Govone. The famous shroud of Turin is part of the museum collection in the Palazzo Reale.
The Monferrato vineyards is one of the other UNESCO World Heritage sites in Piemonte.

Answer: Lombardy

The Santa Maria delle Grazie is a convent and church in Milan, the Lombard capital. It is especially known as the site for the original fresco "The Last Supper" by Leonardo da Vinci, at one wall of the refectory, although the opposing wall (with a painted "Crucifixion" by Giovanni Donato da Montorfano) is worth admiring as well. Montorfano's work is better preserved, although the side panels with the portraits of the Sforza family, Dukes of Milan, were lost.
Of course the church and convent contain other works of art also. For a complete description, you'll either have to visit it yourself or read the Italian Wikipedia entry.
Other UNESCO World Heritage sites in Lombardy include the city centre of Mantua.

Answer: Tuscany

The town of San Gimignano on the eponymous hill is a medieval walled settlement, with several of its lookout towers still intact. The Etruscans were the first settlers on this hill. At the end of the Roman Republic, one of the conspirators allied with Catilina built a castle on the hill. Around 450 AD the town was renamed San Gimignano, after the bishop of Modena who helped to spare the town form looting by the Huns. During the Twelfth Century, rivalling families in the town started to build high towers, up to the moment the city council decreed that no tower must exceed the height of the tower next to the city hall.
Although about 60 towers were demolished over time, there are still 14 towers erect. The tallest of these, the Torre Grossa next to the main church, dates from 1310 and reaches 54 m height.
Part of the city hall is now turned into a museum, with works by early Renaissance painters as Gozzoli and Filippo Lippi.
San Gimignano is situated in Tuscany, about 20 km southwest of Florence.
Tuscany is a region that counts several UNESCO World Heritage sites. Besides San Gimignano, the town centres of Pisa, Siena and Florence are on the list, as well as the villas of the De Medici family.

Answer: Lazio

The Villa d'Este was built at the orders of cardinal Ippolito II d'Este (1509-1572), the second son of the Duke of Ferrara Alfonso and grandson to Pope Alexander VI (born Rodrigo Borgia). Ippolito was named governor of Tivoli, a town east of Rome where once the Roman Emperor Hadrian had a summer residence. Ippolito spent his vast fortune building a splendid villa in Renaissance style, with very elaborate fountains in the garden. Construction of the garden and fountains was hampered by the fact that the upper part of the garden is about 45 m higher than the lower part, so many stairs had to be provided.
One of the highlights in the garden is the Cento Fontane: three rows of a hundred waterspouts each, mostly shaped as the fleur de lys (symbol of the French royalty, to whom Ippolito was once advisor) and as eagles (prominent on the coat of arms of the d'Este family).
Tivoli is about 35 km to the east of Rome, capital of Lazio and of Italy. When visiting Rome, one can easily find public transportation to Tivoli.
The city centre of Rome is also a UNESCO World Heritage Centre, shared with Vatican City.

Answer: Veneto

The history of Verona is unclear, but it was made into an important city by the Romans. The city thrived in the Fourteenth Century. Situated on the river Adige, Verona lies about 115 km to the west of Venice.
Verona offers several examples of Roman architecture, as well as medieval buildings. Some highlights of Verona are the Arena, the Porta Borsari, the Ponte Scaligero and the Basilica of San Zeno Maggiore. In the Via Capello near the Piazza dell'Erbe (the antique Roman forum) you can find La Casa di Giulietta, the house with the balcony that pretends (for the benefit of tourists) to be the site of the famous balcony scene in Shakespeare's play "Romeo and Juliet".
The Arena di Verona was completed in 30 AD, one of the biggest amphitheatres for gladiatorial games at that time. Nowadays the arena is frequently used for opera performances and (classical) concerts. Many opera performances start at sunset and the spectators are asked to bring their own candles to lit the spectacle.
The Porta Borsari is an ancient gate in the Roman walls. The present buildings date from 265 AD.
The Ponte Scaligero was built in the Fourteenth Century as (at that time) the longest arch bridge in the world. After destruction during the Second World War, it was completely rebuilt in the previous style.
The Basilica di San Zeno is not the main church in Verona, but it is a well preserved church in Romanesque style. It would have been the church in which Romeo and Juliet married, unbeknownst to their respective families.
The Casa di Giulietta was built in the Fourteenth Century and did belong to a family named Capelletti. But the statue of Juliet erected in the courtyard, is not consistent with Shakespeare's play. In the play, Juliet was only thirteen years old, while the statue depicts a more mature girl.
Other UNESCO World Heritage sites in Veneto are the city and lagoon of Venice, and the city centre of Faienza.