Umbria travel:
Franciscan Itinerary
La Verna - Assisi

Umbria Franciscan Itinerary La Verna - Assisi

La Verna and Montecasale (in Tuscany) have a great importance in the life of Saint Francis.

Church of San Francesco (Saint Francis) – (Umbertide)
The church of San Francesco (Saint Francis) dates back to the 14th century. Its facade, which is built of stone blocks, is decorated with a portal with a trilobate arch (three lobes in the shape of a clover), surmounted by a wide oculus (eye, round window). In the last chapel on the left we find a work by Niccolo' Circignani, known as Pomarancio, entitled Madonna in Glory and four Saints, dating back to 1577. Immediately to the right of the church lies one side of the small cloister in the form of an arcade on pillars. On the right of the cloister stands the small church of S. Bernardino which houses a 16th-century wooden statue of Saint Bernardine. Both churches are closed for restoration.

Photo © Roberto Romano

Convent and church of S. Maria della Pieta' – (Umbertide)
According to several local sources it seems that the convent can be dated to 1481. Its structure is not very large and having gone through the entrance door the visitor comes to a cloister entirely run round by brick-finished arches surmounted by an open gallery which overlooks the small courtyard below.

The date when the building works of the church began is not known for certain, although Briziarelli fixes it at 1486.

However, a private testament relating to a legacy of money for the acquisition of lime, pantiles, timber and bricks for its construction dates back to 4th September 1492 and by this means we can be certain that works were underway in this period.

Also worthy of note are the portal in bluish-grey sandstone which frames the chapel of the SS. Sacramento and the modern stained glass windows (vetrata di destra) e which date back to 1975, the work of Father Alberto Farina also well-known for his works in Assisi.

The high altar and the altar of St. Bernardine is the so-called "Choir of the Musicians" dating back to 1633. Opposite this chapel is a canvas by the painter from Fratta, Bernardino Magi, dating back to 1602 and representing St. Anthony Abbot offering the town of Fratta to the Virgin Mary.
The church is currently closed for restoration.

Church of S. Croce now Museum of Santa Croce – (Umbertide)
The church was built in 1610, to a design by a local architect, Fracassini, which involved enlarging a chapel belonging to the Augustinian fathers which had been in existence from 1338.
Now deconsecrated and converted into the Museum of Santa Croce it contains the restored Deposition from the Cross by Luca Signorelli and other important paintings including a canvas by Pomarancio, together with several bronze objects of a votive nature discovered near the Sanctuary on the high ground of Monte Acuto, dating back to the 6th and 5th century B.C. and kept upstairs. The high altar has an interesting wooden mostra by Pietro Lazzari.

Among the many works of art we find: the Immaculate Conception by Antonio Gherardi, the Crucifix and Franciscan saints of the Nucci school, the Deposition of the Cross, a copy of the painting by Daniele da Volterra executed by his pupil Nucci, the canvas by Imperiali with the Virgin enthroned and Saints, the canvas with St. Carlo Borromeo by Bandiera and St. Anthony of Padua by Anna Allegrini of 1673.
The characteristic chapel in the right-hand apse is dedicated to St. Francis and it is believed to stand on the site where the saint received the habit from the Spadalonga. The hypothesis is borne out by the fact that on the right-hand wall traces can be seen of the ancient house of the Spadalonga, now incorporated into the church.

The left-hand apse contains the most conspicuous work, by Gubbio's most famous painter, Ottaviano Nelli, consisting of a cycle of 17 frescos illustrating the life of the Madonna and dated to between 1408 and 1413.
Passing through the large sacristy, we reach the convent cloister.On the left of the entrance we have a portal flanked by the splendid double lancet windows of the chapterhouse. In the latter, on the right, is a fresco detached from the wall datable perhaps to the 14th century, which would seem to depict the transit of the Holy House of Loreto. On the other side of the cloister is a Crucifix with various saints and 14th-century frescos. On the right is the refectory, with a pulpit let into the wall and a sinopia whose fresco perhaps depicts the tree of life.

Church of S. Francesco della Pace – (Gubbio)
This small holy building dates back to the 17th century.It contains a memento of the cave which, according to tradition, for two years was the home of the wolf miraculously cured by the saint. It seems the altar was made with the stone where St. Francis brought about peace between the animal and the inhabitants of Gubbio.

Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria – (Gubbio)
The small church of S. Maria della Vittoria or Vittorina belongs to a convent of the Friars Minor where St. Francis stayed. Inside are frescos from the 15th and 16th century.
According to tradition it was not far from this place, in the wood, that the encounter took place between St. Francis and the ferocious wolf that was creating havoc amongst the inhabitants of Gubbio. The Saint called it and taught it not to harm anyone. In exchange the inhabitants had to undertake to feed it and take care of it as long as it lived.

In 1228, in fact, brother Elias received from Pope Gregory IX (protector of the "Franciscan Order") a plot of land to build on, defining the architectural style of the edifice itself. The Basilica consists of the superimposition of two churches of equal size but different in type. Pope Innocent IV consecrated the Basilica on 20th May 1253. The holy building is in the Romanesque style with features characteristic of transalpine-Gothic.

In vivid colors they were executed by a master follower of Giotto, known as the "Maestro delle Vele". The last chapel on the right is dedicated to St. Mary Magdalen and contains some of the most important creations of the artistic maturity of Giotto.

<<< ...previous | continue... >>>

Courtesy of Umbria 2000

© 1997-2010 Enrico Massetti
TangoItalia - Food, Wine, Travel, and... tango in Italy.