Sant'Anna is a

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 ...

style,

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 ...

parish church, located in Piacenza, Region of

Emilia Romagna egl, Emigliàn (man) egl, Emiglièna (woman) rgn, Rumagnòl (man) rgn, Rumagnòla (woman) it, Emiliano (man) it, Emiliana (woman) or it, Romagnolo (man) it, Romagnola (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title ...

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 ...

History

A small church at the site titled ''Santa Maria di Betlem'' was associated with a nearby convent of the

Umiliati The Humiliati (Italian ''Umiliati'') were an Italian religious order of men formed probably in the 12th century. It was suppressed by a papal bull in 1571 though an associated order of women continued into the 20th century. Origin The origin of ...

. In 1334, the property passed to an order of Servite nuns, who rebuilt the structures and dedicated the church to St Anne. It remained with this order until 1788, when the church was managed by Oratorian priests. By 1806, parts of the convent were used as a jail for women and an orphanage for boys. The prison was soon closed, and by 1819, the orphanage moved to the monastery of San Savino. In 1841, the convent then became use as a hospital and hospice run by

Carmelites , image = , caption = Coat of arms of the Carmelites , abbreviation = OCarm , formation = Late 12th century , founder = Early hermits of Mount Carmel , founding_location = Mount Car ...

. In 1868, the church took the role of parish church from the church of San Salvatore. The apse had been enlarged in 1500 to host the nuns during services. The construction of six side altars in the 17th-century caused the gothic lancet windows to be walled up. The facade of the church was not completed until 1925 using designs by Camillo Guidotti. The belltower was not erected until 1937 using designs by Pietro Berzolla. Much of the interior church decoration is from the past two centuries. According to tradition, the monastery complex hosted a 14th-century wooden icon and painting of San Rocco. The ''Via Crucis'' canvases were painted (1892) by

Paolo Bozzini Paolo Bozzini (25 January 1815 – 1892) was an Italian painter. Biography He was born in Piacenza. He began his studies under Carlo Maria Viganoni in his native city; the patronage of doctor Lodovico Guglieri, allowed him to travel to Rome to w ...

. The stained glass window of St Roch on the facade was completed in 1925, while the side windows were completed only after 1980. The four stained glass windows of the apse designed by the Peresson firm from Milan, by their artist Trento Longaretti of Bergamo and depict ''Nativity'', ''Baptism'', ''Crucifixion'', and the ''Mourning of the Death of Jesus Christ''. In church on right is a fresco on ''Resurrection of Christ'' by

Bernardino Gatti Bernardino Gatti (c.1495 – 22 February 1576) was an Italian painter of the Renaissance, active mainly in Parma and Cremona. He is also commonly called il Sojaro. He was born in or near Pavia or Cremona. His early apprenticeship is unclear, ...

.Tagliaferri, ''Nuovissima Guida''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anna, Piacenza Roman Catholic churches in Piacenza 14th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Gothic architecture in Emilia-Romagna