In enchanted places where nature and art tell the story of
the piety of the Saint of Norcia.
Abbey of S. Felice di Giano dell'Umbria
The abbey complex of S. Felice di Giano runs along the
right-hand side of the church of the same name, with the oldest
part, to the North, appearing in all its might to the pilgrim
who, arriving from Giano, makes his way up the long tree-lined
avenue towards the church.
In 1373 the historic abbey was
subjected to the jurisdiction of the Benedictine abbey of Sassovivo near Foligno and in the course of the 15th century
passed under the control of the Augustinian hermits of Perugia.
Along the right-hand wall of the church is the entrance to the
cloister; this has a rectangular plan, two sides of which are
entirely frescoed with The Stories of Saint Felix and also
contains fragments of sculpted material originating from the old
church and found during the recent restoration.
On the East side
of the cloister stands the great Chapterhouse with a sturdy
central column supporting the barrel vault and a small loophole
in the left-hand wall which opens onto the crypt.
Since 1815,
the abbey of S. Felice has been the seat of the Congregation
of the Most Precious Blood, founded by San Gaspare del Bufalo.
Abbazia dei Santi Fidenzio e Terenzio – Massa Martana
The ancient abbey of Santi Fidenzio e Terenzio dates back to the
9th century, when a community of Benedictine monks was
established in the nearby monastery and ran the complex until
the end of the 14th century.
Previous to its construction a small oratory had stood on the
burial place of the two martyrs, whose sacred remains were
exhumed in 1629 and transferred to the nearby village of Bassano
di Orte. The simple pitched facade has a portal surmounted by a
round arch and an elegant double lancet window crowning the
pediment.
The interior, after the radical alterations carried
out in the 13th century, has a single hall, with a raised
presbytery terminating in a deeply-recessed apse where there are
a remarkable number of early mediaeval sculptural fragments
reused in its construction. It has an interesting ceiling with
wooden beams and painted bricks, reinforced by transversal
Gothic arches.
Above the narrow passage which leads to the
crypt, on the left of the stairs, is an ambo with reliefs. The
crypt, datable to the end of the 9th century, is dominated by
the large central column in grey marble with an Ionic capital
which supports the vaults, reinforced with sub-arches during the
13th-century renovation. Along the left-hand side of the church
rises the mighty bell-tower which rests on a large room with a
domed vault from the late imperial age.
Abbey of Santa Maria in Pantano – Massa Martana
The abbey complex of S. Maria in Pantano stands along the route
of the ancient Via Flaminia, as demonstrated by numerous
archaeological finds. At some undocumented time the church had a
monastery of Benedictine monks annexed to it.
As soon as they
were settled in the area, the latter devoted themselves to
reclaiming the fertile terrain which had turned to marshland due
to the frequent flooding of the Tribbio torrent, giving the
complex of S. Maria in Pantano, i.e. in the mud, its name.
After
1104 the abbey was subject to Farfa, as is also recorded in a
document by Emperor Henry V in 1118.
Abbey of San Benedetto al Subasio - Assisi
The monastic complex of S. Benedetto al Subasio has extremely
ancient origins and is documented from 1051, when it is recorded
as being subject to the Abbey of Farfa.
At the end of the 14th
century, after it had been deserted by the monks, the abbey
became the refuge of the rebel citizens who had poured out of
Assisi and were led by the Fiumi family. Only in 1945 did the
Benedictines of S. Pietro of Assisi regain possession of the
abbey.
All that remains of the Romanesque abbey are the perimeter
walls and the church, which dates back to the second half of the
11th century; it has a single nave and the presbytery is raised
above the coeval crypt, divided by columns with sculpted
capitals into five aisles.
Not far from the church, within the monastery precincts, is
another, older crypt (dating back to the 7th-8th century).
Characterised by lowered vaults supported by three large
columns, it recalls the coeval crypt in the church of S.
Silvestro in Collepino. At the time of St. Francis, the abbot of
S. Benedetto al Subasio donated the Chapel of the Porziuncola in
S. Maria degli Angeli to the Saint and each year in memory of
this gesture the Franciscans still offer the Benedictines of
‘Subasio’ a basket of fish.
Abbey of San Silvestro - Spello
The Abbey of S. Silvestro was founded in the vicinity of the
village of Collepino by St. Benedict in 523 and, in 1025, when
St. Romuald was abbot, the complex was dedicated to Pope St.
Sylvester. Originally the building was only a hermitage and
remained so until 1150 when Pope Eugenius III imposed on the
monks the Camaldolese Rule.
The remains of the original structure of the church include the
presbytery area and the semicircular apse, with an admirable
fresco depicting the Madonna and Child enthroned , the
interesting sarcophagus on the high altar and the crypt below.
The latter is a fine example of mediaeval (11th century)
monastic architecture and consists of a rectangular room with
three mighty columns supporting the substantially lowered barrel
vault.
The Abbey of S. Silvestro had many famous abbots, who have
entered the history books as popes (including Gregory IX,
Clement V) and Don Ugolino, the fraternal friend of St. Francis,
whom he canonised on 16th July 1228. In 1970, on the area
occupied in former times by the monastery, the so-called hermitage of the Transfiguration was built, where the
community of the Little Sisters of Mary resides, founded by
Sister Teresa dell’Eucarestia.
Abbey of S. Croce di Sassovivo - Foligno
Situated on the mountainside, the Abbey of S. Croce di Sassovivo
is one of the oldest proofs of the Benedictine presence in the
Spoleto valley. The monks founded it in the 11th century and
organised a study center and a scriptorium there of great
cultural interest.
Nowadays the archive belonging to the Abbey
of Sassovivo, consisting of parchments and documents some of
which date back to the 11th century, is preserved at the
Diocesan Archive in Spoleto.
All that remains of the original Romanesque structure are the
mighty perimeter walls and the understructures on the valley
side which prop up the rooms of the monastery. The very fine
cloister is also Romanesque, the work of the Vassalletto
family, celebrated Roman marble workers. One of the churches
subject to the Abbey of S. Croce was the Roman Basilica of the
Santi Quattro Coronati, seat of the monastic delegation of
Sassovivo at the Holy See.
Church of S. Alè - Terni
The church of S. Alè is one of the oldest and most fascinating places of worship in the city. The saint's name is a Latin
diminutive of Aloysius, a goldsmith saint who lived in the 6th
century. Erected in the 12th century, but perhaps on top of
older buildings, it was characterised by a pitched facade with a
high bell-tower. The construction of a town-house in front of
the old facade in the 13th century, resulted in the closure of
the road which led to the front of the church and the entrance
was moved to the right-hand flank of the building.
The present-day entrance is characterised by a fight of steps
with two Roman age, column-bearing lions either side, placed
there to protect the site. Above the portal there is a charming
panel with the Madonna della Misericordia (15th century),
appealed to against the scourge of the plague. The small
construction was used as a place of worship by various
communities: the Augustines (13th century), the Sisters of St.
Clare of Assisi (15th and 19th centuries) and the Knights of the
Order of Malta (18th century). At present St. Alè is the church
of the new Diocesan Seminary and the Diocesan Vocations center.
The interior is divided into three aisles between two rows of
cylindrical columns and pillars. The apse, which is entirely
decorated with frescoes, is preceded by a rectangular connecting
space. The walls and columns are also decorated with frescoes which date from the 12th to the 16th century. The most important
are those on the wall at the entrance, outstanding among which
is a fragment of a Crucifixion of considerable interest in terms
of its antiquity (12th century), and the figures of Saints on
the ancient counter-facade.
The external wall face shows numerous fragments of Roman and
Longobard sculptures salvaged and reused as building material.
Several of these it seems come from the furnishings of the old
Cathedral.
