Santa Paolo Apostolo 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 ...

church located on Via Bartocci in the town of

Fiastra Fiastra is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Macerata in the Italian region Marche, located about southwest of Ancona and about southwest of Macerata. Fiastra borders the following municipalities: Camerino, Cessapalombo, Fiordimont ...

, province of Macerata, in the region of

Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...

, Italy.

History

A church is documented at the site since 1234. It was defined by a basilica layout with three naves, but it was refurbished over the centuries starting in the 18th century, in part due to earthquake damage. The present church mostly was designed in 1833. The three rounded apses of the earlier Romanesque church were converted into a single square space. The chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento has a rich stucco decoration, similar to the Bolognese church of Santa Maria delle Grazie. The main altarpiece of the church was once a ''

Conversion of Paul the Apostle The conversion of Paul the Apostle (also the Pauline conversion, Damascene conversion, Damascus Christophany and the "road to Damascus" event) was, according to the New Testament, an event in the life of Saul/ Paul the Apostle that led him to c ...

'' by

Giovan Battista Gaulli Giovanni Battista Gaulli (8 May 1639 – 2 April 1709), also known as Baciccio or Baciccia (Genoese nicknames for ''Giovanni Battista''), was an Italian artist working in the High Baroque and early Rococo periods. He is best known for his grand ...

. The painting is now sheltered in the palazzo comunale. The belltower was rebuilt in 1914 at the site of a former watchtower of an adjacent castle.Province of Macerata
tourism office.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paolo Fiastra 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Baroque architecture in Marche