San Pier Maggiore is an originally Romanesque-style, former

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

Pistoia Pistoia (, is a city and ''comune'' in the Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of a province of the same name, located about west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno. It is a typi ...

, 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 ...

. The church is notable for polychrome decorations that partially decorate the ground floor of the exterior, similar to that see in the church

San Giovanni Fuorcivitas San Giovanni Fuoricivitas (also called San Giovanni Evangelista Fuorcivitas or ''Forcivitas'') is a Romanesque religious church and adjacent buildings in Pistoia, Tuscany, central Italy. The adjective ''fuoricivitas'' (a mix of Italian and Latin m ...

History

A church here was putatively erected circa 798 by a Lombard patron, by the name of either Ratperto di Guinichisio or Retnato di Guillichisio. It came to be under the ownership of an order of

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 ...

nuns, and later Franciscans. In underwent a few expansions and refurbishment, a major restoration in 1263, from when the Romanesque exterior derives. The central portal's

architrave In classical architecture, an architrave (; from it, architrave "chief beam", also called an epistyle; from Greek ἐπίστυλον ''epistylon'' "door frame") is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of columns. The term can ...

is attributed to the workshop of

Guido da Como Guido is a given name Latinised from the Old High German name Wido. It originated in Medieval Italy. Guido later became a male first name in Austria, Germany, the Low Countries, Scandinavia, Spain, Portugal, Latin America and Switzerland. The mea ...

, and depicts a "Jesus Giving the Keys to St Peter, with the Virgin and the Apostles". The façade has maintained the original Romanesque appearance, and, like the nearby church of

San Bartolomeo in Pantano San Bartolomeo in Pantano is a Romanesque and Gothic style, Roman Catholic church in Pistoia, Tuscany, central Italy, dedicated to St. Bartholomew the Apostle. The '' pantano'' of the name refers to the once marshy area in which the building was ...

, is divided into five compartments with bichrome decoration. In 1640, under Jesuit ownership, the interior was largely restored and enriched with Baroque-style decorations. Today the church is deconsecrated, the interior artwork has been moved, and the former convent now houses a State Institute of Arts, the ''Liceo Artistico Petrocchi''. In the

matronaeum A triforium is an interior gallery, opening onto the tall central space of a building at an upper level. In a church, it opens onto the nave from above the side aisles; it may occur at the level of the clerestory windows, or it may be locate ...

are exhibited work by the Pistoiese sculptor Andrea Lippi. Of historical interest is that a newly appointed bishop to Pistoia, arriving to town via Porta Lucchese, in a ceremony in this church, would have a

mystical marriage __NOTOC__ Within the Christianity, Christian tradition, bridal theology, also referred to as mystical marriage, is the New Testament portrayal of communion with Jesus as a marriage, and God's reign as a wedding banquet. This tradition in turn trac ...

to the abbess of the Benedictine convent, and then move to the cathedral to take his post.F. Tolomei, page 59-60.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pier Maggiore Pistoia 8th-century churches in Italy 11th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy 12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy 13th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Pier Maggiore Romanesque architecture in Pistoia Churches completed in 1263 Churches completed in 1124