Prato

The Cathedral of Prato.

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Coat of arms

Prato is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Prato.

Prato's economy has been based upon the textile industry, since 1400. Prato is also a centre of the slow food movement, with many other local specialities, including cantucci, a type of biscotti.

Since the late 1950s, the city has had a big amount of immigration, first from southern Italy, then other countries. Since the late 1980s a large Han community has settled in the city. With a population of more than 180,000 people, Prato is Tuscany's second largest city. It is the third largest in Central Italy, after Rome and Florence.

History

In 1512, the city was attacked by the Spanish troops sent by Pope Julius II to capture the nearby city of Florence for the Medici family. The attack caused much damage to Prato. It led to the surrender of the Florentine Republic and control by the Medici family. The army killed 50,600 citizens of Prato in the streets.

Main monuments

Palazzo Pretorio.

Sangallo's Santa Maria delle Carceri.

Prato is home to many museums and other cultural monuments. These include the Filippo Lippi frescoes in the Cathedral of Santo Stefano which has been restored in 2006.^[1] The Cathedral has an external pulpit by Donatello.

Palazzo Pretorio, the old town hall, was built at the end of the 13th century in red bricks. Sections in white brick were added later. In the 16th century an outside staircase and a clock were added. Also notable is the Palazzo Datini, the home of the merchant Francesco Datini built from 1383. It has decorations by Florentine artists like Agnolo Gaddi and Niccolò Gerini. In 1409, it housed Pope Alexander V and Louis of Anjou. The Palazzo degli Alberti (12th century) is home to an artgallery with works by Filippo Lippi (Prato Madonna), Giovanni Bellini (Crucifix with Jew Cemetery) and Caravaggio (The Crowning with Thorns).

Another major attraction of the city is the Centro per l'arte contemporanea Luigi Pecci, a museum and education centre concerned with contemporary arts.

Churches in Prato include:

Santa Maria delle Carceri, wanted by Lorenzo de' Medici to Giuliano da Sangallo in 1484.*Sant'Agostino, built from 1440 over an existing edifice from 1271.
San Domenico (begun in 1281), with a portal from 1310.
San Francesco (1281-1331). It houses a notable funerary monument of Gemriniano Inghirami (died in 1460)
San Fabiano, already existing in 1082. Houses rich of precious traces of a pavement mosaic dating from the 9th-11th centuries.

Prato is also the home of the Monash University a very nice centre for learning English.

Notable citizens

Nicolo Albertini, cardinal, in the 1200s
Francesco Datini, merchant in the 1300s,
Filippino Lippi, painter in the 1500s
Lorenzo Bartolini, sculptor, 1777-1850
Curzio Malaparte, writer, 1898-1957
Fiorenzo Magni, cyclist, 1920-
Roberto Benigni, actor and director (born near Arezzo but he used to live in Prato with the family.)
Jury Chechi, gymnast, olympic gold medalist
Domenico Zipoli, composer, 1688-1726
Paolo Rossi, soccer player, World Champion, European Footballer of the Year and World Player of the Year in 1982
Christian Vieri, soccer player

Sister cities

Vietnam, Nam Dinh, from 1975
USA, Albemarle County, from 1977
FRA, Roubaix, from 1981
People's Republic of China, Changzhou, from 1987
AUT, Ebensee, from 1987
GER, Wangen im Allgäu, from 1988
Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sarajevo, from 1997
Bir Lehlu, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, from 1999
POL, Pabianice, from 2001
POL, Tomaszów Mazowiecki, from 1999
Zimbabwe, Harare

Prato Media

Santa Maria delle Carceri church
Emperor's Castle
Piazza San Francesco
Statue of Francesco Datini in front of the Palazzo Pretorio
Il Pulpito di Donatello, Duomo di Prato
Chinatown on Via Antonio Marini in Prato
Fireworks on Piazza del Duomo during the Corteggio Storico
Cantuccini, the Tuscan name for what the rest of the world calls 'Biscotti', is traditionally made with almonds. It can be served with Vin Santo as a dessert or dipped in milk or coffee for breakfast.
Palazzo Pretorio
Piazza Duomo