FABRIANO

town, Ancona province, in Marche (The Marches) region, central Italy. The town was the home of a minor school of painting founded in the late 14th century by Allegretto Nuzi and Gentile da Fabriano; frescoes by the former decorate the local cathedral. A Romanesque-Gothic mayoral palace (1255) and a municipal art gallery are other notable buildings. The town was severely damaged during the fighting in World War II. It has manufactured paper, its principal product, since medieval times. Pop. (1981 prelim.) mun., 28,616.