Spoleto (ancient Spoletium), town, central Italy, in Umbria Region. The town is the market and processing center for the surrounding agricultural area. Its industries include the manufacture of cement, foodstuffs, printed materials, and textiles. Spoleto is also a tourist center and is the site of an annual arts festival organized in 1958 by the Italian American composer Gian-Carlo Menotti. Among the city's noteworthy structures is a cathedral begun in the 12th century and containing frescoes by the Florentine painter Fra Filippo Lippi. The ancient town was colonized by the Romans in 241 BC. About AD 570 it became the capital of an independent duchy that rose to great power in the 9th century under Guido of Spoleto. From the early 13th century to 1860 it was a papal possession. Population (1996) 37,763.
