Soon-to-be released book by Tuscany native Gioia Olivastri, Cortona and the Rediscovery of Humanism, recounts the fascinating history of the Church of San Francesco in Cortona. Olivastri reveals new details about the church’s founding by St. Francis of Assisi’s right-hand-man Brother Elia in the mid-13th century, dissects its celebrated collection of rare relics and Baroque masterpieces, and pursues new leads in the search for the tomb of Renaissance artist Luca Signorelli, who, after a dazzling career frescoing the walls of the Sistine Chapel and Orvieto Cathedral, returned to his home town Cortona.
Famous in his own lifetime for influencing Michelangelo and Raphael, Signorelli died in 1523 and reportedly was buried in the crypt of the Church of San Francesco. Olivastri analyzes tantalizing clues in Signorelli’s paintings and describes the ongoing search for his body using 21st-century forensic techniques.
