Italy—Emilia Romagna and Tuscany—5

 

Basilica of St. Mark, Florence, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1942.

The Medici family built a church and convent here for the Dominicans in the 15^th Century.  This was once the home to Fra Angelico who contributed a fresco and a crucifix.  The Dominicans operated a pharmacy here from 1460 to 1995 and developed an elixir similar to Coca Cola.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of Ss. Vincenzo Ferrari and Caterina de’ Ricci, Prato, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1947.

The Baroque Basilica was built in the 16^th Century and is the burial place of St. Caterina.

 

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle, Faenza, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1948.

The basilica is the co-Cathedral for the Diocese of Faenza-Modigliana.  It was built in a Renaissance style between 1474 and 1515 and replaced an earlier cathedral. 

Both pictures are from local sources.

 

Basilica Abbey of St. Mary of the Assumption, Vallombrosa, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1950.

St. John Gualbert started the congregation of the Vallombrosans and this abbey church was built in the 11^th Century using Romanesque and Baroque styles.  Renovations have taken place until at least the 18^th Century.  The church contains many works of art.

Pictures are from Facebook, a local source, and Wikipedia.

Basilica of the Blessed Virgin of Molino, Lugo, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1951.

A merchant was traveling through this area in 1496 when his wagon was overturned.  A plaster Madonna in the wagon was shattered into fragments.  Local children came by to help and began to pray.  A bright light appeared and the plaster statue was made whole again with no signs of fracture.  A church was built here in 1497, but the current Romanesque and Gothic church was built in 1934.

Both pictures are from TripAdvisor.

Basilica of St. Mary of the Servites, Bologna, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1954.

The Servites built this brick Gothic church in 1346, although it was not fully completed until the 15^th Century.  The 1558 marble altarpiece was done by a pupil of Michelangelo.

Pictures are from Alamy, a local source, and Wikipedia.

 

Basilica of Blessed Virgin of Ghiara, Reggio Emilia, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1954.

The church was built in the early 17^th Century to house a votive fresco associated to a 1596 miracle.  The interior is richly decorated in a Late Renaissance style using several frescoes.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

 

Basilica of the Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmel, Florence, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1954.

A church was built here in 1268 as part of a Carmelite convent.  An 18^th Century fire required a renovation and today the interior is decorated with frescoes and utilizes Renaissance, Baroque, and Rococo styles.

 From a local source.

Basilica of St. Mary of Compagna, Placenza, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1954.

The Renaissance church was built by a local guild between 1522 and 1528 and has is decorated with several frescoes.  It was built to house a 14^th Century wooden Madonna.  Pope Urban II announced the First Crusade from this site in 1095.

The first two pictures are from Trip Advisor and the last is from Wikipedia.

 

Basilica Sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin of Piratello, Imola, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1954.

Our Blessed Mother appeared to a man in 1483 and told him she wanted a church built at this site.  The church was built between 1489 and 1492 and is administered by Third Order Franciscans.  The bell tower was built by Bramante.

 The first two pictures are from local sources and the last is from TripAdvisor.

 

 

 

Italy—Emilia Romagna and Tuscany—4

Basilica of Our Lady of Humility, Pistoia, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1931.

A small church here had a fresco that dripped blood from the forehead of Our Blessed Mother.  This church was replaced by the current Renaissance church in the 16^th Century. 

Pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Mary of the Assumption, San Gimignano, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1932.

The Romanesque Basilica was built in the 12^th Century to replace a 10^th Century church.  The church has numerous frescoes.

 

Pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of the Holy Cross and St. Francis, Florence, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1933.

The basilica was built between 1294 and 1385 in a variety of styles and may have replaced an earlier church founded perhaps by St. Francis.  It is the largest Franciscan church in the world and has 16 chapels, many decorated with frescoes by Giotto and his pupils.  It is the burial place for many notable Italians, including Michelangelo, Galileo, Rossini, and Machiavelli.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

 

Basilica of St. Francis, Bologna, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1935.

After St. Francis visited Bologna 1222, the Franciscans built this Romanesque and French Gothic church between 1236 and 1263.  It has been heavily damaged during several wars but has been restored.

Pictures are from Wikipedia, a local source, and Trip Advisor.

Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, Poggibonsi, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1938.

The Franciscans built a church here in the 13^th Century and replaced it with a Gothic church between 1326 and 1475.  This church was heavily damaged by a fire in 1655.  It was rebuilt in a Neo-Gothic style in the 18^th Century.

From a local source.

Basilica of Our Lady of the Prisons, Prato, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1939.

A child noticed that an image of the Madonna and Child painted on the wall of the local jail suddenly became animated.  This church was built in the late 15^th Century to commemorate this event.  It is an early example of a Greek cross plan using Renaissance architecture.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

 

Basilica of St. Anthony of Padua, Bologna, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1939.

The brick church was built by the Franciscans from 1898 to 1904 in a neo-Gothic style.  It is named for St. Anthony who lived in Bologna from 1222 to 1224 preaching against heresies. 

 

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

 

Basilica of St. Martin, Bologna, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1941.

The basilica was built in the early 13^th Century and given to the Carmelite fathers.  The Gothic church has been renovated several times including in 1929.  The pipe organ dates to 1556.

The first two pictures are from TripAdvisor and the last two are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Lawrence, Martyr, Monticelli d’Ongina, Emilia Romagna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1942.

The basilica was built in the late 15^th Century and was considered the most beautiful church in the area to the point that at one time it was directly under the purview of the Pope and not a church of any diocese.

 

 Both pictures are from local sources.

Basilica of Our Lady of the Rock, Bibbiena, Tuscany

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1942.

Our Blessed Mother appeared to a young girl in 1347 and gave her some beans.  When the girl’s mother cooked the beans, they were full of blood.  This was later seen as an omen of a plague that devastated Europe the following year, but spared Bibbiena.  The Dominicans were given control of the church in the 15^th Century and built the current church.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.