Orbetello - The Town

There are still considerable remains of Etruscan sea-walls and - particularly in the Piazza Quattro Novembre - of the Spanish fortifications begun in the reign of Philip II (1557) and completed under his son and successor Philip III (1620). The cathedral was built in 1376 on the site of an earlier church and enlarged in the 17th century by the addition of two aisles. On the travertine facade, still in Gothic style, are a finely carved doorway and, above this, a rose-window and a bust of St Benedict. In the Palazzo della Pretura is the Antiquarium Cívico, a museum containing archeological material from Orbetello and the surrounding area, including Etruscan and Roman bronzes and pottery.