CADORE

From Cortina as you descend in to the Ampezzo valley you can't miss the pyramidal Antelao towering above as you come to San Vito, a pretty village resort that has successfully blended its traditions with a stylishly modern square. If Antelao is the highest peak in the valley, it is admirably complemented by Mount Pelmo opposite: with its saddle-like summit, Pelmo is also known as 'God's Throne'. Many fossils have been found on its flanks, along with the footprints of the dinosaurs that roamed here hundreds of thousands of years ago. In quick succession are the resorts of Borca, Vodo, Valle and Tai, followed by the village of Pieve. This is the heart of Cadore.

ART AND CULTURE

Many remarkable monuments can be admired in the municipal territory, a testimony to the important role played by Pieve within the community of Cadore. A political and administrative centre for the entire area of Cadore, the Palazzo della Magnifica Comunità (Palace of the Magnificent Community) was built between 1447 and 1477; the Tower, erected a few decades later, dates back to 1491. Following its destruction in the early sixteenth century by a serious fire started during a raid on the village by troops of the League of Cambrai, the Palace was entirely reconstructed: its facade is sober, with simple and severe lines; in its interior, the ample and majestic Hall of the Community is magnificently decorated, with works of art, trophies, busts of Cadore natives who had been valorous patriots, and the coat of arms of the Magnificent Community (which bears the motto "Justitia et fide conservabitur"). Meetings of the Magnificent Community are still today held in the Palace; it houses a museum and, throughout the years, hosts conventions and events. A religious centre and ancient main parish church of many Cadore churches, the present church of Pieve, is named after Santa Maria Nascente. The parish is of ancient origins but the church we can today admire is fairly recent: it was in fact built over a pre-existing Gothic edifice between 1761 and 1819 and underwent subsequent restructuring work. The interior preserves numerous works of art by Tiziano, Cesare, Francesco and Orazio Vecellio, Tizianello, Giovan Battista Cima da Conegliano and many others. Also of interest are the church of Christ of Valcalda and the church dedicated to the SS.Angeli: the former is of very ancient origin and was once dedicated to Sant'Antonio Abate. The church is officiated by the Carmelite Barefoot Fathers, who live in the adjacent convent. At Nebbiu, the beautiful parish church dedicated to Saint Bartholomew the Apostle is worth a visit. It preserves a few valuable works of art, among which the two altarpieces by Carlo Capobianco and the one by Marco Vecellio and Giuseppe Cherubin are outstanding. In Pozzale we find the church of Saint Thomas the Apostle: inside there is a precious polyptych by Vittore Carpaccio. Besides proudly preserving some of his works, Pieve has honoured its own most illustrious son, Tiziano Vecellio, by dedicating a monument to him and conserving his natal house, an ancient and dignified construction not far from the main square.

TITIAN (Tiziano Vecellio)

One of the most important artistic figures of the 16th century was born in Pieve di Cadore in 1490. He trained mainly in Venice, where he produced most of the works that today can be observed in famous museums around the world. Titian's legacy to his land was the profound influence on the style of many local artists. The Vecellios were an ancient noble family of Cadore with feudal privileges during the Middle Ages, later confirmed by the rule of the Serenissima; many of its members were notaries and held public positions. Tiziano was born in Pieve at the end of the fifteenth century, probably in 1490, and, together with his older brother Francesco, started studying drawing and painting: he was sent to Venice to stay with relatives: he became a pupil of Giorgione and came into contact with the artists that worked during those years in the lagoon city, treasuring their examples and precious teachings, and very soon surpassing them thanks to his eminent capacities. Within a short time he became famous and venerated, and spent his life between Venice and the main European courts, dying in Venice in 1576. The house he was born in is now a tiny museum for savouring past times and appreciating something of the artist's genius. An original painting is in the parish church.