Palazzo Ducale di Urbino

It was commissioned by Federico da Montefeltro, lord and later duke of Urbino, one of the wealthiest and most cultured condottieri of the fifteenth century. Work began in the mid-century; from around 1466 it was directed by the Dalmatian architect Luciano Laurana, then by Francesco di Giorgio Martini from Siena. Baldassare Castiglione described it as a city in the form of a palace, and from Urbino the model spread throughout Italy.

You recognise it immediately from the valley: the façade of the Torricini, two slender towers with three superimposed loggias, looks westward like a curtain opened onto the landscape. Inside, Laurana's courtyard of honour is a lesson in measure and light, with inscriptions celebrating the duke's virtues.

The secret heart of the palace is the duke's Studiolo: a small room entirely lined with wooden intarsia that mimics half-open cupboards, books, musical instruments and armour, beneath portraits of illustrious men. Next to it are the Cappella del Perdono and the Tempietto delle Muse.

Since 1912 the palace has housed the National Gallery of the Marche. Here you can see Piero della Francesca's Flagellation and Madonna di Senigallia, Raphael's Muta, the celebrated panel of the Ideal City and works by Federico Barocci. Allow at least two and a half hours: the visit takes you through the piano nobile, second floor and underground rooms.