San Paolo a Ripa d'Arno (St. Paul on the bank of the Arno) 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 in

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

, 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 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 ...

. It is a pre-eminent example of Tuscan Romanesque church architecture. The church is also locally known as ''Duomo vecchio'' (old cathedral).

The church

Reports of the founding of the church trace to around 925, but by 1032, a church structure existed. It was initially affiliated with a Benedictine monastery. By 1092, the church was annexed to a monastery of the

Vallumbrosan The Vallombrosians (alternately spelled Vallombrosans, Vallumbrosians or Vallumbrosans) are a monastic religious order in the Catholic Church. They are named after the location of their motherhouse founded in Vallombrosa ( la, Vallis umbrosa, shad ...

monks and, later to a hospital 1147. The building, whose design is attributed to the architect Bruschetto, was modified in the 11th-12th centuries in a style similar to that of the local Duomo,Pandolfo Titi,(1751), page 212. being reconsecrated by Pope Eugene III in 1148. In 1409 the building complex was transferred to the administration of the

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 ...

Landolfo di Marramauro, then since 1552 was given to the Grifoni family of San Miniato. After 1565, it was transferred to the Holy Order of St. Stephen. After its suppression, in 1798 the church became a

Parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

. In 1853 the building underwent some significant reconstruction, directed by Pietro Bellini, which aimed to restore its romanesque origins. During the

Second World War 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 ...

, this church, like many in Pisa, suffered damage. Restoration efforts were pursued in 1949-1952. In the course of this work, the buildings in the back were demolished, restoring the small Sant'Agata chapel to its original free-standing state. The exterior has bichrome marble bands which re-use Roman stones. The façade, designed in the 12th century, but completed in 14th maybe by Giovanni Pisano, has two corps with pilaster strips, blind arches, marble intarsias and three orders of loggias in the upper section. The interior is on the Latin cross plan with a nave and two aisles divided by columns in granite from Elba, an

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In ...

and a dome on the crossing with the

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

. It houses a 13th-century ''Crucifix'' on panel, frescoes by

Buonamico Buffalmacco Buonamico di Martino, otherwise known as Buonamico Buffalmacco (active c. 1315–1336), was an Italian Renaissance painter who worked in Florence, Bologna, and Pisa. Although none of his known work has survived, he is widely assumed to be the ...

and a ''Madonna with Saints'' by

Turino Vanni Turino Vanni (late 14th century) was an Italian painter. Biography He was born at Rigoli, a small village near Pisa. Works He was an imitator of Taddeo Bartoli. * The records show that he worked for the Duomo of Pisa between 1390 and 1395. ...

(14th century), but most of all a 2nd-century Roman sarcophagus used as medieval tomb. The relief on this sarcophagus was used as a model by both Nicola Pisano and his pupil

Arnolfo di Cambio Arnolfo di Cambio (c. 1240 – 1300/1310) was an Italian architect and sculptor. He designed Florence Cathedral and the sixth city wall around Florence (1284–1333), while his most important surviving work as a sculptor is the tomb of Cardin ...

Sant'Agata Chapel

Behind the church is located the St. Agatha Chapel, a small Romanesque chapel built around 1063 by the monks. It was built to celebrate the conquest of the city of

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

in that year and dedicated to the Saint, who was martyred in Sicily. However, the first written attestation of the chapel's existence is from 1132. It is an octagonal structure in brickwork, featuring pilasters, arches including

mullioned window A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...

s and an unusual pyramidal cusp. The interior houses remains of 12th century wall decorations. The choice of the octagonal plan and the date of construction (i.e. the 12th century) suggest

Diotisalvi Diotisalvi, also Deotisalvi or Deustesalvet, was an architect from Pisa, Italy, active in the 12th century in Pisa. Little is known of him. Career Baptistry of Pisa He is well known to be the original architect of the Baptistry of Pisa, in Pia ...

as its architect. Until the

, the chapel was within a cloister which blocked it from view from outside. In the bombardment of 1943, the surrounding structure was destroyed and when it was reconstructed it was decided not to restore it and to leave the chapel in an area of public parkland instead.

References

External links

Page with details on decorations {{DEFAULTSORT:Paolo A Ripa D'arno 10th-century churches in Italy 12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Paolo a Ripa d'Arno Romanesque architecture in Pisa