Chiesa di San Francesco is a church in

Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are compl ...

Umbria it, Umbro (man) it, Umbra (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , ...

, Italy. It was consecrated in 1266. It belongs to the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Orvieto-Todi The Diocese of Orvieto-Todi ( la, Dioecesis Urbevetana-Tudertina) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in central Italy. It was created in 1986 when the historical Diocese of Orvieto was united to the Dioc ...

History

The

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

s established a hermitage near Orvieto in the early 13th century and built the present church in 1234. It was consecrated as SS Francesco e Ambrogio in memory of Ambrose of Massa who had died in 1240. After being enlarged in 1264, the church was consecrated simply to San Francesco in 1266 by

Pope Clement IV Pope Clement IV ( la, Clemens IV; 23 November 1190 – 29 November 1268), born Gui Foucois ( la, Guido Falcodius; french: Guy de Foulques or ') and also known as Guy le Gros ( French for "Guy the Fat"; it, Guido il Grosso), was bishop of Le P ...

. Until the duomo was completed in 1290, it was the largest church in Orvieto.

Architecture

The building is typical of Franciscan churches of the period with a single nave, a quadrangular apse and a trussed wooden roof. At a width of , the nave is wider than the common 21.10 metres. A more open look is achieved by arches which progressively project inwards. The interior was altered in the second half of the 16th century when altars were placed along the lateral walls. From 1768 to 1773, two sets of side chapels were added while the church was given a sober

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 ...

appearance. The dome over the transept was also added in 1773. The original facade has been heavily restored. Its

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 ...

has been replaced but the sculpted marble portal survives intact.

Interior and furnishings

The interior originally took the form of a hall church but was redesigned in 1773 when colonnades were added to provide for side chapels. The damaged statues of

Pope Boniface VIII Pope Boniface VIII ( la, Bonifatius PP. VIII; born Benedetto Caetani, c. 1230 – 11 October 1303) was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 December 1294 to his death in 1303. The Caetani, Caetani family was of b ...

in the left aisle date from 1297. The wooden crucifix above the altar is thought to be the work of Lorenzo Maitani (c. 1320). The three 16th-century altarpieces in the chapels are attributed to

Cesare Nebbia Cesare Nebbia (c.1536–c.1614) was an Italian painter from Orvieto who painted in a Mannerism, Mannerist style. Biography Nebbia was born in Orvieto. He trained with Girolamo Muziano, and under this master, he helped complete a flurry of de ...

. They depict the Immaculate Conception (1584), the Madonna and Child, and

Christ in Judgment Christ in Majesty or Christ in Glory ( la, Maiestas Domini) is the Western Christian image of Christ seated on a throne as ruler of the world, always seen frontally in the centre of the composition, and often flanked by other sacred figures, who ...

. In the chapel to the left of the presbytery, a series of frescos was discovered during restoration work in 1999. Attributed to Pietro di Puccio, they depict scenes from the life of

St Matthew Matthew the Apostle,, shortened to ''Matti'' (whence ar, مَتَّى, Mattā), meaning "Gift of YHWH"; arc, , Mattai; grc-koi, Μαθθαῖος, ''Maththaîos'' or , ''Matthaîos''; cop, ⲙⲁⲧⲑⲉⲟⲥ, Mattheos; la, Matthaeus a ...

References

External links

Illustrated guide to San Francesco Church from "Key to Umbria"
{{coord, 42, 42, 58, N, 12, 06, 40, E, type:landmark, display=title Roman Catholic churches in Orvieto 13th-century establishments in Italy 1266 establishments in Europe 13th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Francesco Orvieto