Santa Maria di Nazareth is a Renaissance church in the town of Sestri Levante, in the Gulf of Tigullio in the Metropolitan City of Genoa. Located in the center of the old village of Sestri Levante, adjacent to the town hall, its parish community is part of the Diocese of Chiavari.
A chapel at the site, dedicated to Mary, is documented as early as 1368, but by 1604, following the sale of a plot by the local nobleman Bernardo Bolasco, construction of the present church began. The final consolidation of the isthmus with the headland, known locally as "Island", which led to the expansion of Sestri Levante, and linked the community to the existing church of St. Nicholas, located at top of the island is already home parish, was therefore more suitable for the spiritual needs of the population.
The construction of the church over 12 years was entrusted to the architect Giovanni Battista Carbone. The church inherited the title of co-cathedral of the diocese of Brugnato from the existing church of St. Nicolò. It was the seat of synods, diocesan from 1675 to 1725 and home of the bishops of the diocese from the sixteenth to the 18th century. Elected to the title of Collegiate Church in 1755, it was named a minor basilica on June 22 of 1962. A few years later he switched to the Diocese of Chiavari (1959).
The interior has a three naves separated by square pillars with pilasters which rest on rounded arches. The interior was decorated in the 18th and 19th centuries. The nave has a barrel vault with lunettes, a deep chancel raised and a semicircular apse. The altar (1762) with polychrome marble contains a sculptural group by Francesco Maria Schiaffino depicting the Virgin Mary with cherubs holding up the Holy House of Nazareth.
The previous original facade of the 17th century, remain the two towers on either side that have decorations but also the 19th century, the portal is a marble statue of the Madonna and Child.
In the nave the largest frescoes (1893) are the work of the painter Lazzaro De Maestri, in the second altar of the right aisle of the painting The Martyrdom of Saint Catherine of Alexandria by Castellino Castello, in the presbytery and in the apse are works by Rocco Costa and Giuseppe Galeotti; in the chapel to the left of the nave there is a 12th=century crucifix from the former parish church of St. Nicolò.
In the left aisle where the wooden sculptural group representing the Deposition from the 18th century, a Pentecost by Domenico Fiasella, a Transit of St. Joseph (1654) by Orazio De Ferrari, a Madonna del Carmine and a Saints Lawrence and John the Baptist by Lazzaro Tavarone.
The procession of the Holy Christ occurs every 25 years.
The architecture of cathedrals and great churches is characterised by the buildings' large scale and follows one of several branching traditions of form, function and style that derive ultimately from the Early Christian architectural traditions established in Late Antiquity during the Christianisation of the Roman Empire.
The Basilica of San Domenico is one of the major churches in Bologna, Italy. The remains of Saint Dominic, founder of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), are buried inside the exquisite shrine Arca di San Domenico, made by Nicola Pisano and his workshop, Arnolfo di Cambio and with later additions by Niccolò dell'Arca and the young Michelangelo.
Santa Maria in Via Lata is a church on the Via del Corso, in Rome, Italy. It stands diagonal from the church of San Marcello al Corso.
The Pontifical Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua is a Catholic church and minor basilica in Padua, Veneto, Northern Italy, dedicated to St. Anthony of Padua.
The Cathedral of St. Anastasia is the Roman Catholic cathedral of Zadar, Croatia, seat of the Archdiocese of Zadar, and the largest church in all of Dalmatia.
Prato Cathedral, or Cathedral of Saint Stephen, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Prato, Tuscany, Central Italy, from 1954 the seat of the Bishop of Prato, having been previously, from 1653, a cathedral in the Diocese of Pistoia and Prato. It is dedicated to Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr.
The chiesa di Sant'Anastasia, or the Basilica of Saint Anastasia is a church built by the Dominican Order in Verona, northern Italy. In Gothic style, it is the largest church in the city, located in its most ancient district, near the Ponte Pietra.
San Paolo Maggiore is a basilica church in Naples, southern Italy, and the burial place of Gaetano Thiene, known as Saint Cajetan, founder of the Order of Clerics Regular. It is located on Piazza Gaetano, about 1-2 blocks north of Via dei Tribunali.
The Diocese of Chiavari is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Liguria, northern Italy. It was created on 3 December 1892 by Pope Leo XIII in the Bull Romani Pontifices. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Genoa.
Pavia Cathedral is a church in Pavia, Italy, the largest in the city and seat of the Diocese of Pavia. The construction was begun in the 15th century on the site of two pre-existing Romanesque, "twin" cathedrals. The cathedral houses the remains of St. Sirus, first Bishop of Pavia, and a thorn purported to be from the Crown of Thorns worn by Christ. The marble facing of the exterior was never completed.
San Nicolò dell'isola is a Romanesque style, Roman Catholic parish church in the town of Sestri Levante, in the Liguria, Italy. The temple's construction dates from the 12th to the 17th century.
Santa Maria delle Vigne is a Roman Catholic basilica church in Genoa, Italy. It was built in the 10th century. The main altar was completed in 1730 by Giacomo Antonio Ponsonelli. The church is also the final resting place of the leading early Italian composer Alessandro Stradella, who was murdered in 1682.
The Ancient Royal and Eminent Basilica Collegiate of Our Lady of the Alms, better known as Basilica della Colleggiata, is a church in Catania, Sicily, southern Italy. Finished in 1794, it is an example of Sicilian Baroque.
The Basilica of San Fedele in Como is located in the city center. The present Romanesque church dates from 1120 and is dedicated to the Fidelis of Como.
Otranto Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the Italian city of Otranto, dedicated to the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. It is the archiepiscopal seat of the Archdiocese of Otranto. The cathedral was consecrated in 1088. It is 54 metres long by 25 metres wide and is built on 42 monolithic granite and marble columns from unknown quarries. Its plan is a three-aisled nave with an apsidal east end. On either side of the west façade are two lancet windows.
Sarsina Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Sarsina, a municipality in the province of Forlì-Cesena, region of Emilia-Romagna, Italy, dedicated to the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. Formerly the seat of the Bishops of Sarsina, since 1986 it has been a co-cathedral of the Diocese of Cesena-Sarsina.
The Basilica of Santa Maria della Quercia is a Renaissance-style, Roman Catholic sanctuary church and minor basilica, about two kilometer outside of the center of Viterbo, on the road to Bagnaia, in the Region of Lazio, Italy.
San Tommaso Apostolo is a Romanesque and Gothic-style, Roman Catholic church located in the town of Ascoli Piceno in the region of Marche, Italy.
The church of the Abbey of San Filippo d'Agira is located in Piazza Abbazia #1 in the town of Agira, province of Enna, region of Sicily, Italy. It is also referred to as the Reale Abbazia or royal abbey.
Fano Cathedral is the principal church of Fano, Marche, Italy. Originally the seat of the bishop of Fano, since 1986 it has been the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Fano-Fossombrone-Cagli-Pergola. In January 1953 Pope Pius XII elevated it to the rank of a basilica minor.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
