What Makes Italy Special: Heritage, Art, Food and Home-Town Pride
Rome, Venice, Florence, the Renaissance and a food culture loved around the world. A guide to what makes Italy special.
By Ceylon Trends · · 2 min read
Italy holds one of the greatest concentrations of art and history on earth: 62 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the cities of Rome, Venice and Florence, the Renaissance, opera and a food culture loved in every country. Here is what makes it special.
Sixty-two World Heritage Sites
UNESCO lists 62 World Heritage properties in Italy, among the highest totals of any country. Among them:
- Historic Centre of Rome, capital of an empire and home of the Vatican
- Venice and its Lagoon, a city built on water
- Historic Centre of Florence, cradle of the Renaissance
- Piazza del Duomo, Pisa, with its famous leaning tower
- Pompei, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata, Roman towns preserved by Vesuvius
- Villa d'Este, Tivoli, with its celebrated gardens and fountains
The Renaissance
The Renaissance transformed art, architecture and science, and much of it began in Italy. Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael are names known everywhere.
Opera and music
Opera was born in Italy, and Italian remains the language of music: words like piano, forte and allegro are used by musicians around the world.
A food culture loved everywhere
Italian food is regional, seasonal and deeply tied to place. The art of the Neapolitan pizzaiuolo, the pizza-maker, is recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage. Pasta, espresso and gelato are loved in every country, yet every Italian region and town defends its own dishes.
Loyal to the bell tower
Italians are famously proud of their own town, a feeling called campanilismo, after the campanile or bell tower. Dialects, festivals and recipes change from town to town, and every one has its defenders.
Style and craft
From fashion and design to cars and handmade crafts, Italian style is admired around the world.
Carrying the pride with you
Ancient cities, Renaissance art, opera and the table: Italy gives its people more to celebrate than almost anywhere. That pride is what our Italy designs are made for, and our guide to choosing a gift based on someone's home town shows how to make it personal.
Questions and answers
How many UNESCO World Heritage Sites does Italy have?
UNESCO lists 62 World Heritage properties in Italy, 56 cultural and 6 natural, among the highest totals of any country in the world.
What is campanilismo?
Campanilismo is Italian loyalty to your own town, named after the campanile, the bell tower of the local church.
