The Church of Saint Francis in Deruta

The central windows of the apse belong to
the original church. 

One of the beautiful things to admire in a romanesque church like the Church of Saint Francis in Deruta is its glass windows.

The apse contains three couples of windows, the central one only is original, the ones on the sides are new. The new windows portrait the latest Popes from John XXIII to John Paul II.

The apse of the Church of Saint Francis
in Deruta 

The tradition of glass windows in Umbria dates back to the 13th century, which is about the same as the ceramics tradition of Deruta. 

In Umbria the most famous town for its glass tradition is Piegaro. 

The glass windows of the Cathedral of Orvieto were made in Piegaro (1320 A.D.) . Nowadays Piegaro produces glass bottles for the Fiuggi water, Martini & Rossi, for Campari and other important Italian producers on industrial scale. The new operations are located right outside of town. 

In terms of the Piegaro glass history there is a vast literature and two historical monuments in town that are worth the visit: the Glass Museum, which was the second glass factory established in the 1800s and "L'Antica Vetreria" which is the first original glass factory and where you can now stay for your vacations!

Ceramics plaque with the history
of the bell 

The Church of Saint Francis in Deruta is also famous for the original bell which was casted for the canonisation of Saint Francis.