Orvieto
a city of Italy, province of Perugia; 78 miles N. N. W. of Rome; crowns an isolated tufa rock, which rises 765 feet above the river Pagalia, and 1,327 above sea-level. The cruciform cathedral (1290-1580), one of the most beautiful and richly adorned specimens of Italian Gothic, is built of black and white marble, and measures 295 feet by 109. The interior also is magnificently decorated with sculptures and with paintings by Luca Signorelli, Fra Angelico, etc. The bishop's palace and St. Patrick's Well (1527-1540), with its 250 steps, are also noteworthy. Orvieto, O'RYAN called in the 7th century A. D. Urbs Vetus in the Middle Ages gave shelter to 32 Popes. Pop. (1911) with suburbs, about 20,000.