According to several sources, the Abbey of Montelabate dates back to the 9th century: in 969 a Papal Bull by Pope Johannes XIII ordered the Abbott Pietro to restore the monastry and to start there a new Benedictine cenacle.
The Abbey's highest splendor was reached between 1200 and 1300, while in the late '400 it underwent a new restoration, testified by the frescoes of Fioranzo di Lorenzo and Bartolomeo Caporali. The abbey ruled vast terrain in these ages, from Lake Trasimeno up to Gubbio. The huge church of the Abbey, currently looking out of place in the rather deserted countryside, is one reminder of the power the abbey used to have.
After the unification of Italy, the Abbey became property of the State. Afterwards it passed through several private ownerships and now it is owned by the Gerolamo Gaslini Foundation based in Genova.
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