Santa Maria dello Stellario (or Church of Stellario) was a

catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Church located in piazza Ciullo, in the town centre of

Alcamo Alcamo (; scn, Àrcamu, italic=no) is the fourth-largest town and commune of the Province of Trapani, Sicily, with a population of 44.925 inhabitants. It is on the borderline with the Metropolitan City of Palermo at a distance of about 50 kilo ...

, in the

province of Trapani Trapani ( it, Provincia di Trapani, scn, Pruvincia di Tràpani; officially ''Libero consorzio comunale di Trapani'') is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily, southern Italy. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it ...

History

It was founded in the 17th century by

Mariano da Alcamo Mariano da Alcamo (1555? – 27 July 1621) was an Italian Catholic presbyter. Biography He was born in Alcamo in the (province of Trapani), between 1555 and 1560, as his parents (Niccolò Bonafino from Savoca (in the province of Messina), and Ca ...

, a Capuchin friar, and consecrated in 1625. As the historian

Ignazio De Blasi Ignazio De Blasi (Alcamo, 1717-1783) was an Italian historian. He was the first scholar who wrote a history of his town providing documentary evidence on it. Biography Ignazio De Blasi was born in Alcamo in 1717, the son of Benedetto de Blasi, a ...

affirms in his work, they carried the

Holy Sacrament There are seven sacraments of the Catholic Church, which according to Catholic theology were instituted by Jesus and entrusted to the Church. Sacraments are visible rites seen as signs and efficacious channels of the grace of God to all those ...

and the painting of ''Maria Santissima dello Stellario'' in procession to this Church, to ask her intercession for rain to come. It had not rained for several months: it rained continuously for three consecutive days.Messina, Salvatore (2015). Alcamo nella storia, nella leggenda e nell'arte. Alcamo: Campo. The founder also created the homonimous

confraternity A confraternity ( es, cofradía; pt, confraria) is generally a Christian voluntary association of laypeople created for the purpose of promoting special works of Christian charity or piety, and approved by the Church hierarchy. They are most c ...

in the same period. In 1964, before being demolished, the Church was not in bad conditions: in fact, in 1939 Maria De Blasi Casale, a widow, had financed the restoration of its roof."La Chiesa dello Stellario ad Alcamo. Uno scempio impunito"

Description

The

façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a Loanword, loan word from the French language, French (), which means 'frontage' or 'face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often t ...

had a fine portal; the Church had a single

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 ...

, there were

Ionic capitals The Ionic order is one of the three canonic orders of classical architecture, the other two being the Doric and the Corinthian. There are two lesser orders: the Tuscan (a plainer Doric), and the rich variant of Corinthian called the composite or ...

and two altars on both sides. On the high altar, there was a painting of the titular saint, later missing, realized by Giuseppe La Ficara in 1651.Cataldo, Carlo (2001). La conchiglia di S.Giacomo. Alcamo: Campo The picture, with a low artistic value, represented

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

on a throne of clouds, in the middle of 12 stars and the

Infant Jesus The Christ Child, also known as Divine Infant, Baby Jesus, Infant Jesus, the Divine Child, Child Jesus, the Holy Child, Santo Niño, and to some as Señor Noemi refers to Jesus Christ from his nativity to age 12. The four canonical gospels, a ...

in her arms; there were a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

and a capuchin friar on the sides, while the Eternal Father and the Holy Ghost were portrayed in the upper part. In 1769 the Church was embellished with

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

es; inside it, there were also some ancient crypts which were destroyed during the demolition, made after the building had been sold by the

Curia Curia (Latin plural curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally likely had wider powers, they came ...

of Trapani. With the income they bought a piece of land in Viale Europa, in order to provide that area with a

parish Church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

, later called chiesa del Sacro Cuore.

The confraternity of Santa Maria dello Stellario

It was founded on 21 June 1602 in the

Mother church Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metro ...

and had its oratory inside this Church. From the information that the historian Ignazio De Blasi handed down, we know that its brethren were butchers and farmers. They wore a sack and a visor made with linen cloth, a fabric mantle with the image of Maria Santissima dello Stellario, and a big cordon; they went barefoot, with sandals like capuchin friars, the order which their founder, Father Mariano Bonofino, belonged to. The confraternity dissolved in the forties.

Duties of the brethren

Here it is the list of their obligations: * Being always very diligent, in any occasion * Taking part in the sung Mass and receive Communion on 8 September, festivity of their titular Saint. * Taking part in the procession of

Corpus Domini The Feast of Corpus Christi (), also known as the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, is a Christian liturgical solemnity celebrating the Real Presence of the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ in the elements of ...

and on its

Octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

* Accompanying dead brethren to their sepulchre and complying with the Easter Precept on

Maundy Thursday Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday (also known as Great and Holy Thursday, Holy and Great Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries, among other names) is the day during Holy Week that commemorates the Washing of the ...

, in the Church of the Capuchin friars.

References

Sources

* * * * * {{Cite web, url=http://www.tp24.it/2015/05/17/inchieste/la-chiesa-dello-stellario-ad-alcamo-uno-scempio-impunito/91789, title=La Chiesa dello Stellario ad Alcamo. Uno scempio impunito