Fonte Oliviera

The Fonte Oliviera (Oliviera Fountain) is thought by some to have been designed by Galeazzo Alessi, a well-known 16th century architect from Perugia who was also a pupil of Michelangelo in Florence.

Built in local limestone, probably between 1535 and 1539, the fountain is often said to have been commissioned by Oliviero Ludovici in 1570. The fountain is set in a recess between the noble palace where the Assisi-born scholar Francesco Antonio Frondini lived on the left and the Palazzo del Monte frumentario on the right. The fountain is made up of a long rectangular basin with a series of large volutes alternating with frames decorated with coats of arms: the lion with the cross and that of the Ludovici family.

Above the fountain there is a plaque inscribed with the words: ‘A one-shield fine and loss of their laundry for anyone doing their washing in this fountain’. This warning was clearly affixed to prevent local inhabitants from washing their laundry there. Indeed, use of the fountain for such a purpose was considered unseemly in view of both its position, namely the street once known as the Via Superba, and the quality and beauty of the fountain, whose purpose was to provide drinking water for people, especially pilgrims on their way to the basilica, and animals.

Next to the fountain there is the elegant portico of the Palazzo Monte Frumentario, which was used for hospitality and is recognised as one of the first hospitals in Italy, built in 1267.