The Cathedral of the two Patron Saints Gervasio and Protasio stands where the ancient parish church was once built, from which the city takes part of its name. It was erected between the 7th and 8th centuries. A.D.
Pieve was the name of a parish church with baptismal functions.
A small fortified village developed around it, between the 8th and 9th centuries. A.D. Initially the village was renamed Plebs de Sancti Gervasii (Pieve di San Gervasio). Only later it became Castello della Pieve, thanks to its increasing military and local importance.
The ancient parish church turned into a collegiate church first, and a cathedral and seat of the diocese, later on in the year 1600. As the town became seat of the Diocese, it gained the name of Città and finally became known as Città della Pieve. The church underwent several renovation works throughout the centuries that changed its layout and style forever. Nothing remains of the ancient parish church. On its facade, however, some elements of its long history are still visible, such as the series of pointed arches in sandstone from the Romanesque-Gothic era or the seventeenth-century bricks.
Its Baroque-style interior is entirely decorated with faux marble paint effect and has six chapels. The first chapel on the left houses the altarpiece by Perugino “Baptism of Christ”, while the third, always on the same side, houses the altarpiece by Pomarancio entitled “Marriage of the Virgin”.
The main altar, on the other hand, is decorated by another altarpiece by Perugino “Madonna in Glory, with Saints Peter and Paul and the Patron Saints Gervasio and Protasio”.
The crypt located under the apse is another must-see. It probably dates back to the Romanesque-Gothic phase of the church, where massive sandstone columns and pillars hide traces of frescoes attributed to the painter Benozzo Gozzoli (15th century).
