San Pietro in Valle is a

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 ...

-style church located on Via Nolfi/Via San Francesco in the town of

Fano Fano is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort southeast of Pesaro, located where the ''Via Flaminia'' reaches the Adriatic Sea. It is the third city in the region by popula ...

province of Pesaro and Urbino The Province of Pesaro and Urbino ( it, Provincia di Pesaro e Urbino, ) is a province in the Marche region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Pesaro. It also borders the state of San Marino. The province is surrounded by San Marino and Emilia ...

in the

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 ...

region of Italy.

History

A more ancient church dedicated to St Peter had been located at this spot, in the incline (ad vallum) between the old Roman town and the coast. The location gave the church an original name that changed into in valle. The present church was erected by the

Oratorians An Oratorian is a member of one of the following religious orders: * Oratory of Saint Philip Neri (Roman Catholic), who use the postnominal letters C.O. * Oratory of Jesus (Roman Catholic) * Oratory of the Good Shepherd (Anglican) * Teologisk Orator ...

, who called on Giovanni Battista Cavagna from Naples to design the church just after 1608 until his death in 1613. The church was consecrated in 1617. The facade remain incomplete, although the interior is rich in decoration. The dome was built (1696) atop an octagonal

tiburium In architecture, the lantern tower is a tall construction above the junction of the four arms of a cruciform (cross-shaped) church, with openings through which light from outside can shine down to the crossing (architecture), crossing (so it also ...

by Girolamo Caccia, and decorated on the interior by Lauro Buonaguardia in 1699-1700. The stucco-work (1619) was completed by Pietro Solari, while the frescoes were painted (1618-1620) by

Antonio Viviani Antonio Viviani (1560–1620) was an Italian painter of the late Renaissance and early Baroque. He was also called ''il Sordo di Urbino'' ("the Deaf of Urbino"), because of his self-absorption while painting frescoes. He was born in Urbino, and t ...

of Urbino, who painted ''Meeting of St Peter and Paul'', ''Crucifixion of St Peter'', ''Glory of St Peter'', ''St Peter lies about Jesus'', ''Fall of Simon Magus'', ''Christ walks on Water'', ''Quo Vadis'', and ''Embarcation of St Paul in Malta''. Some of the sculptural main altar decoration (1710) is by Giorgio Ferretti. Most of the original altarpieces of the church have mainly been moved to the Pinacoteca Civica. Viviani also painted an ''Annunciation'' in the presbytery and two canvases in the chapel of St Paul (''Fall'' and ''Decapitation of St Paul''). The third chape on the left has a canvas depicting ''St Paul resuscitates Eutichius'' by

Lorenzo Garbieri Lorenzo Garbieri (1580 – 5 April 1654) was an Italian painter of the early-Baroque period, active mainly in Bologna. He was one of the painters in the studio of Ludovico Carracci and is sometimes called ''il nipote dei Carracci''. He was said t ...

. The first chapel on the left, has an ''Annunciation'' (1621) by

Guido Reni Guido Reni (; 4 November 1575 – 18 August 1642) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, although his works showed a classical manner, similar to Simon Vouet, Nicolas Poussin, and Philippe de Champaigne. He painted primarily religious ...

. The first chapel on the right has an altarpiece depicting the ''Virgin appears to St Phillip Neri'' (1699) by

Luigi Garzi Luigi Garzi (1638 – 1721) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, whose work displayed heavy influences of the Bolognese painter, Guido Reni. Biography Born in Pistoia. He started learning from a poorly known landscape painter, Salomo ...

. The third chapel on the right has two canvases depicting a ''Crucifixion'' and ''Deposition'' by Alessandro Vitali, placed adjacent to a wooden Crucifix by Pietro Liberi. The Second chapel on the right has a ''Birth'' and ''Decapitation of St John the Baptist'' by Gian Giacomo Pandolfi. At one time, this chapel also held a ''St John the Baptist'' by

Guercino Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (February 8, 1591 – December 22, 1666),Miller, 1964 better known as Guercino, or il Guercino , was an Italian Baroque painter and draftsman from Cento in the Emilia region, who was active in Rome and Bologna. The vig ...

, looted by Napoleonic forces. It now has a ''Birth of the Baptist'' by

Sebastiano Ceccarini Sebastiano Ceccarini (1703–1783), born in Fano, was an Italian Baroque painter. He was a student of Francesco Mancini and the teacher of his nephew Carlo Magini. Biography He painted in Rome during the papacy of Pope Clement XII, painting an ...

. The same painter also painted a ''Sermon of St John the Baptist'' (1782) now in the sacristy as a companion piece. The first chapel on the left has a ''Flight from Egypt'' from Francesco Gabuzio; and a ''Dream of St Joseph'' (1631) by

Giovanni Francesco Guerrieri Giovanni Francesco Guerrieri (1589–1655) was an Italian painter and Caravaggisto. Guerrieri was born in Fossombrone. In 1606 he travelled to Rome where he studied under some notable artists including Orazio Gentileschi. Returning home in 1614 ...

. Gabuzio also painted for the second chapel on the left, the canvases depicting the ''Vision of St Carlo Borromeo'', ''St Charles received by the Petrucci dressed as beggars'', and ''St Charles heals the blind child''. The original main altarpiece by Guido Reni, depicting the ''Consignment to St Peter of the Keys'' (1626) was also looted by the French. It is now replaced by a copy by

Carlo Magini Carlo Magini (1720–1806) was an Italian painter of the late-Baroque period and one of the most original of the 18th century Italian still life artists.Simone Cantarini Simone Cantarini or Simone da Pesaro, called ''il Pesarese'' (Baptized on 21 August 1612 – 15 October 1648) was an Italian painter and etcher. He is mainly known for his history paintings and portraits executed in an original style, which ...

and ''St Peter resuscitates Tabitha'' by

Matteo Loves Matteo Loves was a painter active in Cento from about 1625 to 1662. Few biographical details are known. It is said he was born in Cologne to an English family, and arrived as a young man in Cento, where he trained with Guercino Giovanni France ...

. They are now in the Pinacoteca Civica di Fano or the Pinacoteca San Domenico. The church has a 16th-century bronze bust of St Peter.Comune of Fano
entry on church.

References

{{coord missing, Italy 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Baroque architecture in Marche Roman Catholic churches in the Marche Churches in the Province of Pesaro and Urbino Fano