Brugnato Cathedral (Italian : Duoo di Brugnato; Concattedrale dei Santi Pietro, Lorenzo e Colombano) is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in the old centre of the city of Brugnato, in the Val di Vara in the province of La Spezia, Italy. The dedication is to Saint Peter, Saint Laurence and Saint Columbanus. Once the seat of the bishops of Brugnato, it is now a co-cathedral in the Diocese of La Spezia-Sarzana-Brugnato.
According to some sources, [1] supported by finds in the foundations, the first religious building on the site was constructed in the 7th century [1] over a palaeochristian necropolis, the church of a monastery dependent on Bobbio Abbey, founded by and dedicated to Saint Columbanus. It was rebuilt in the 11th-12th centuries, [1] passed to a resident community of Benedictine monks, and became in 1133 the seat of the diocese of Brugnato [2] (suffragan of the Archdiocese of Genoa) which had spiritual authority over the middle and upper Val di Vara.
With the arrival of the Ghibellines during the 14th century, [2] and the consequent flight of the bishop, who took refuge in Pontremoli, the cathedral lost importance, although it remained as the church of the abbey of the Benedictine community. In 1820 [2] the diocese was merged into those of La Spezia and Sarzana-Luni to form a single diocese with its seat in La Spezia, leaving the abbey church with the title of "co-cathedral".
Restoration work in the 1950s [1] brought about the rediscovery of the remains of the original Romanesque church which were the objects of study in 1994 [1] when archaeological excavations conducted by the archaeological authorities of Liguria revealed the ancient perimeter walls, the floors and a baptismal font beneath the centre of the nave.
In 2009 the cathedral hosted the "Meeting internazionale delle comunità di San Colombano". [3]
The groundplan is based on two asymmetrical naves separated by columns, a fairly common arrangement in the religious buildings of Lunigiana although less so in the churches of Liguria. Above the massive columns are thick semi-circular arcades.
There are differences between the two naves: the central and larger one is covered by barrel vaulting and ends in a semicircular apse with three single-light windows; the smaller side nave to the south however has bays of groin vaulting and terminates in a square wall inside within an external curved apse.
The interior, which is very sober, with few decorative elements [1] retains traces and sculptured fragments from the ancient primitive church, as well as some frescoes among which, on the second column on the south, is one of the 14th century depicting Saint Columbanus giving a blessing; another, discovered during the works of 1994, is on the wall of the lesser nave and shows the Presentation in the Temple , in which may be recognised, not only Jesus, Joseph, Mary and the high priest, but also Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint Laurence.
A painting by Vincenzo Comaschi, dated 1821, depicts the Virgin Mary with the Infant Jesus on her lap among angels and Saints Francis and Laurence. Near the high altar is a polyptych showing Scenes from the life of Christ.
Sarzana is a town, comune (municipality) and former short-lived Catholic bishopric in the Province of La Spezia, Liguria, Italy. It is 15 kilometres (9 mi) east of Spezia, on the railway to Pisa, at the point where the railway to Parma diverges to the north. In 2010, it had a population of 21,978.
Parma Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Parma, Emilia-Romagna (Italy), dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Parma. It is an important Italian Romanesque cathedral: the dome, in particular, is decorated by a highly influential illusionistic fresco by Renaissance painter Antonio da Correggio.
Bobbio Abbey is a monastery founded by Irish Saint Columbanus in 614, around which later grew up the town of Bobbio, in the province of Piacenza, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It is dedicated to Saint Columbanus. It was famous as a centre of resistance to Arianism and as one of the greatest libraries in the Middle Ages, and was the original on which the monastery in Umberto Eco's novel The Name of the Rose was based, together with Sacra di San Michele. The abbey was dissolved under the French administration in 1803, although many of the buildings remain in other uses.
Brugnato is a comune (municipality) in the Province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria, located about 70 kilometres (43 mi) southeast of Genoa and about 15 km northwest of La Spezia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,205 and an area of 12.0 square kilometres (4.6 sq mi). It borders the following municipalities: Borghetto di Vara, Rocchetta di Vara, Sesta Godano, Zignago.
Riccò del Golfo di Spezia is a comune (municipality) in the Province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria, located about 80 kilometres (50 mi) southeast of Genoa and about 10 kilometres (6 mi) northeast of La Spezia.
Rocchetta di Vara is a comune (municipality) in the Province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria, located about 70 kilometres (43 mi) southeast of Genoa and about 11 kilometres (7 mi) north of La Spezia.
The Diocese of La Spezia-Sarzana-Brugnato is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Liguria, northern Italy, created in 1929. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Genoa.
The Diocese of Luni was a Roman Catholic bishopric with its seat in Luni, Liguria, northwestern Italy. The bishop and cathedral chapter moved to Sarzana in the 12th century; the move was formalised in 1201. Though the bishops of Luni had been resident at Sarzana long before the official transfer of the cathedral, the diocese and bishop continued to use the name of Luni in their titles down to 1465, when the name of Sarzana was added to both.
Albenga Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to Saint Michael in the city of Albenga, in the province of Savona and the region of Liguria, Italy. It is the seat of the Diocese of Albenga-Imperia.
Arezzo Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the city of Arezzo in Tuscany, Italy. It is located on the site of a pre-existing Palaeo-Christian church and, perhaps, of the ancient city's acropolis.
Sarzana Cathedral in Sarzana, Liguria, Italy, is a co-cathedral of the Diocese of La Spezia-Sarzana-Brugnato. It is dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. The building is a mixture of the Romanesque and Gothic styles, reflecting the length of the period of its construction, from the early 13th to the late 15th century.
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.
Nino Staffieri was an Italian bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of La Spezia-Sarzana-Brugnato.
Valeriano Lunense is a village (frazione) of about 500 inhabitants in the comune of Vezzano Ligure in the province of La Spezia, Italy ..
The Cathedral of Sansepolcro is a Catholic church in Sansepolcro, Tuscany, central Italy.
Mondovì Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Mondovì, Province of Cuneo, Piedmont, northern Italy, dedicated to Saint Donatus of Arezzo. It is the seat of the bishops of Mondovì.
La Spezia Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in La Spezia, Italy. It is the cathedral of the Diocese of La Spezia-Sarzana-Brugnato. It was built between 1956 and 1975 to designs by Adalberto Libera.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brugnato was a Roman Catholic diocese located in the city of Brugnato in the Province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria of Italy. On 25 November 1820, it was united with and suppressed to the Diocese of Luni e Sarzana to form the Diocese of Luni, Sarzana e Brugnato.
Todi Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Todi, Umbria, Italy, dedicated to the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. It was formerly the seat of the bishops of Todi, and since 1986 has been a co-cathedral of the diocese of Orvieto-Todi.
Casale Monferrato Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Casale Monferrato, province of Alessandria, Piedmont, Italy, dedicated to Saint Evasius. It is the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Casale Monferrato.
Coordinates: 44°14′12.30″N9°43′26.20″E / 44.2367500°N 9.7239444°E