San Venanzio 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 built with a late-

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

structure with Neoclassical restorations, and located in the town of Camerino, province of Macerata, region of Marche, Italy.

History

The present basilica is an exceedingly eclectic assembly of elements from different eras. The facade alone has a Romanesque portal,

rose window, and Neoclassical pronaos. The church structure was significantly damaged during the earthquake of 2016. The church arose around the tomb of San Venanzio (

Venantius of Camerino Venantius of Camerino ( it, San Venanzio, also known as Saint Wigand) (died 18 May 251 or 253)San V ...

), and evidence suggests the structure was built atop an Ancient Roman cemetery. After the town was sacked in 1256 by the forces of the Swabian King

Manfred ''Manfred: A dramatic poem'' is a closet drama written in 1816–1817 by Lord Byron. It contains supernatural elements, in keeping with the popularity of the ghost story in England at the time. It is a typical example of a Gothic fiction. Byr ...

, the church was severely damaged and almost entirely destroyed, . The relics of the saint were purloined to Bari for nearly a decade. The church was originally located outside the early medieval walls, but later protected by the new walls erected in 1384 by the lord Giovanni Varano. Nearly all the structures in the town had to be rebuilt, including the mausoleum of San Venanzio. Documents from late 14th century to 1412 recall paying for statues of the St Gabriel and the Virgin of the Annunciation. Reconstruction of the facade were commissioned from Polidoro di Stefano from Perugia, and the tympanum was added in 1480. The portal is concave with receding arches flanked by pilasters and columns. A new crypt and larger apse rebuilt in the late 16th century, maintaining the Gothic layout. Some of the designs attributed to

Domenico Fontana Domenico Fontana (154328 June 1607) was an Italian architect of the late Renaissance, born in today's Ticino. He worked primarily in Italy, at Rome and Naples. Biography He was born at Melide, a village on the Lake Lugano, at that time joint p ...

. The choir was added in 1558. The dome dates to baroque era (1673-1677) by architect Bernardino Bianchini. The next further reconstruction took place in the century after the earthquake of 1799. Many of the fallen elements are still conserved by the church. The Latin cross interior, was rebuilt in neoclassical style, divided into three naves by two rows of columns. A barrel vault in the central nave, with a series of stucco frames, while aisles covered with coffered ceilings boxes. The architect was Luigi Poletti who also planned on building a second bell-tower. The altar in the crypt consists of the sarcophagus which was decorated in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. The sarcophagus, supported by four black marble griffins is crouched in black marble and located in the corners. It is placed the ark of San Venanzio, attributed to Tuscan artists, built with limestone upon solomonic columns. The silver statue of the saint was commissioned by Bishop Francesco Vivani in 1764.Comune of Camerino
entry on church.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Venanzio Camerino Minor basilicas in Marche Gothic architecture in le Marche Neoclassical architecture in le Marche Roman Catholic churches in Camerino Neoclassical church buildings in Italy