Chiesa di San Pietro Apostolo in San Pietro Vernotico

The Church of San Pietro Apostolo is a church dedicated to St. Peter the Apostle in

San Pietro Vernotico San Pietro Vernotico ( Brindisino: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Brindisi, Apulia, on the south-east coast of Italy. Its main economic activities are tourism and the growing of olives and grapes. It was the site of a substantial M ...

, in

Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

, Italy. The first settlements of the town were recorded around this church, between the VIII and the IX century A.D.

History

The present Church of San Pietro Apostolo dates back to the 16th century. In ancient times, however, it was inhabited by

Basilian Basilian may refer to a number of groups who are followers of Saint Basil the Great and specifically to: * Basilian monks (founded c. 356), monks who follow the rule of Saint Basil the Great, in modern use refers to monks of Eastern Catholic Chur ...

monks (330-379 AD). Indeed, it was rebuilt on a previous medieval building. From a document dated 1133, it’s believed that the Church dates back to around the year 1000, when the

Basilian Fathers , image = Basilian_Fathers.png , image_size = 150px , abbreviation = CSB , nickname = Basilians , formation = , founding_location = Annonay, France , founders = , type ...

built a small church dedicated to the Apostle Peter in the hamlet of Venocio because, according to the legend, the Saint would have spent the winter in the village. Traces of the previous construction of simple quadrangular plan with a vaulted ceiling are located in the ancient room now used as a sacristy. Next to the church there was a place that for centuries was called "oratory of the pilgrims": a set of rooms, or huts, used to host pilgrims who came from distant countries for devotion to St. Peter. By popular legend, on the left side of the Church, there was once a well with miraculous water, which was used to heal the wounds of

tarantula Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although ...

bites. The well was closed in the early 1900s.

Description

Around the original building of the church, therefore, was built the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

one. The church is laid out in a

Latin cross A Latin cross or ''crux immissa'' is a type of cross in which the vertical beam sticks above the crossbeam, with the three upper arms either equally long or with the vertical topmost arm shorter than the two horizontal arms, and always with a mu ...

style, between the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

and the

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

rises the dome on an octagonal drum, externally decorated with polychrome

majolica In different periods of time and in different countries, the term ''majolica'' has been used for two distinct types of pottery. Firstly, from the mid-15th century onwards, was ''maiolica'', a type of pottery reaching Italy from Spain, Majorca a ...

. In 1787 the facade of the building was subjected to a deep renovation, as evidenced by the epigraph still visible on the portal of the church: D.O.M. AEDAM HANC DIVO PETRO SACRAM CLERUS VERNOTICENSIS A SCIPIONE SPINA LYCENSIUM PONTIFICI SIBI PATRONATUS JURE LEGATAM, POSTICA ACCESSIONE THOLO, AC MARMORATO EX COLLOATA PIORUM STIPE, AMPLIOREM ELEGANTIOREMQUE F.C.ANNO DOMINI 1787. While the bell gable is dated 1936. The interior has three altars: the main one is dedicated to the titular of the church and surmounted by a painting of Peter the Apostle and Jesus; the other altars are dedicated, one to

St. Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

and the other one to Our Lady of Loreto. In the part of the dome there are four frescoes of the

Evangelists Evangelists may refer to: * Evangelists (Christianity), Christians who specialize in evangelism * Four Evangelists, the authors of the four Gospel accounts in the New Testament * ''The Evangelists ''The Evangelists'' (''Evangheliştii'' in Roma ...

. On the walls of the only nave there are some paintings of valuable workmanship and baroque stuccoes of notable historical and artistic interest that represent some episodes of the life of Saint Peter the Apostle. In the church are preserved the statues of the following saints: San Luigi Gonzaga, San Biagio Vescovo, Santa Rita da Cascia, a statue of the Blessed Virgin of Pompei and another of the Vergine Addolorata.

References

{{coord missing, Italy Christian monasteries in Italy Byzantine Italy 9th-century churches in Italy Buildings and structures in Brindisi Byzantine church buildings 9th-century establishments in Italy 9th-century establishments in the Byzantine Empire 4th-century churches 4th-century establishments in Italy 4th-century establishments in the Roman Empire 16th-century establishments in Italy 16th-century establishments in the Spanish Empire 16th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy