San Fabiano is a Romanesque-style,

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 ...

church and abbey located at Via di Gherardo and Via del Seminario street in

Prato Prato ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Italy, the capital of the Province of Prato. The city lies in the north east of Tuscany, at the foot of Monte Retaia, elevation , the last peak in the Calvana chain. With more than 200,000 i ...

, region of

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

, Italy.Church of San Fabiano.
Prato Turismo. Retrieved May 25, 2014. The early

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

structure is one of Prato's oldest churches.John Moretti.
Frommer's Florence, Tuscany and Umbria
'. John Wiley & Sons; 5 January 2010. . p. 257.

History

The church already was documented in 1082, and construction lasted into 12th century. Originally attached to a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monastery, it later passed to the

Vallumbrosan Order The Vallombrosians (alternately spelled Vallombrosans, Vallumbrosians or Vallumbrosans) are a monastic Religious order (Catholic), religious order in the Catholic Church. They are named after the location of Vallombrosa Abbey, their motherhouse fou ...

. The church is noted for the 11th century mosaic pavement, depicting panthers, sirens,

griffins The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and back ...

, and floral motifs,Rete Civica di Prato
short introduction. which were found during restoration of the church. The mosaic is made of light

Alberese Alberese () is a rural town in southern Tuscany, a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' of Grosseto. It is situated 20 km south-east of the capital, in the heart of the Natural Park of Maremma. This area includes the surrounding rural territories ...

tiles and black marble. The mosaic images, like the siren, are believed to depict

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...

symbols, which suggests that the church was built on a former pagan site.David Bershad; Caroline Mangone.
The Christian Travelers Guide to Italy
'. Zondervan; 27 December 2011. . p. 247. In the 15th century or the beginning of the 16th century, the brick polygonal bell-tower was added to the church. In 1522, Niccolò Soggi painted the altarpiece ''Baldo Magini with a model of the Church of San Fabiano''; this painting is now located in the

Prato Cathedral Prato Cathedral, or Cathedral of Saint Stephen, ( it, Duomo di Prato; Cattedrale di San Stefano) 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 cathe ...

.1520s.
Portrait timeline. Retrieved 25 May 2014. The polychrome wooden Crucifix located behind the altar is also from the 16th century. Within the courtyard is a facade that has a white and green Prato marble

archivolt An archivolt (or voussure) is an ornamental moulding or band following the curve on the underside of an arch. It is composed of bands of ornamental mouldings (or other architectural elements) surrounding an arched opening, corresponding to the ...

portal.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fabiano, Prato 12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Fabiano Romanesque architecture in Tuscany