Pescina Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Pescina; Concattedrale di Santa Maria delle Grazie) is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

Pescina Pescina () is a township and ''comune'' in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo, central Italy. It is a part of the mountain community Valle del Giovenco. Geography Pescina borders on the communes of Celano, Collarmele, Gioia dei Marsi, Ortona de ...

Abruzzo Abruzzo (, , ; nap, label=Neapolitan language, Abruzzese Neapolitan, Abbrùzze , ''Abbrìzze'' or ''Abbrèzze'' ; nap, label=Sabino dialect, Aquilano, Abbrùzzu; #History, historically Abruzzi) is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy wi ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, dedicated to the

Blessed Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...

under the title of "Saint Mary of the Graces". From the late 16th century it was the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Marsi, replaced in 1924 by the Diocese of Avezzano, when the episcopal seat was transferred to Avezzano Cathedral, since when Pescina Cathedral has been a co-cathedral of the new diocese.

History and description

The cathedral was built in the 15th century. From 1526 the crypt has housed the

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

of Blessed

Berardo dei Marsi Blessed Berardo dei Marsi (1079 – 3 November 1130) was a Catholic Italian cardinal. He was proclaimed Blessed in 1802 as he was deemed to be holy and that miracles were performed through his intercession. Biography Berardo dei Marsi was born in ...

. In 1915 it was damaged by the earthquake in Avezzano and again during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, after the end of which it was restored. The church itself blends various architectural styles. The Renaissance façade is decorated with a large

rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window'' w ...

. The base is decorated with a porch and three portals. The interior has three naves, Renaissance and Baroque, and retains some medieval frescoes. The bell tower is a large three-storey tower, which houses an ancient bell, dedicated to Berardo dei Marsi.

References

Pescina Cathedrals in Abruzzo Roman Catholic cathedrals in Italy 15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Churches in the province of L'Aquila {{Italy-RC-cathedral-stub