Urbino In the great art city of Urbino, every street and alleyway holds some interest to the visitor. Its main attractions are so numerous that the city itself provides quite enough for a tour in its own right. Urbino is inextricably linked with the Montefeltro family and with Raphael, who provide the central theme for any visit to the city. The Ducal Palace, the residence of the Dukes of Montefeltro, dominates the hill town, creating a mixture of splendour and awe to the first time visitor, just as Duke Federico had originally intended. The palace now houses the Galleria Nazionale delle Marche with a vast collection of masterpieces including works by such artists as Piero della Francesca, Raphael and the Flemish painter Justus of Ghent. After visiting the palace, which includes the Dukes extraordinary studioli, decorated in trompe l'oeil panelling, the tour continues on to the medieval and Renaissance districts of the town with their many interesting churches, including San Domenico, Sant'Agostino and San Francesco. A number of ancient lay brotherhoods, known as confraternities, have left fascinating legacy throughout the city. It was they who were responsible for the construction of a number of magnificent oratories that still survive today, including the Oratory San Giovanni Battista, the Oratory of the Confraternita di San Giuseppe and the oratory of Santa Croce. You can also find traces of Raphael's early life in Urbino. The painter's birthplace, in Via Raffaello, stands a short distance away from the main piazza, where you can see the rooms where the artist painted his first works.