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The Collegiate church of Saint Ursus ( it, Collegiata di Sant'Orso, french: Collégiale de Saint-Ours) is a collegiate church in
Collegiate church and cloister of Saint Ursus
CENOBIUM - The Cloister of Saint Ursus in Aosta
9th-century churches in Italy Churches in Aosta Valley Buildings and structures in Aosta {{Italy-church-stub
The Collegiate church of Saint Ursus ( it, Collegiata di Sant'Orso, french: Collégiale de Saint-Ours) is a collegiate church in Aosta
Aosta (, , ; french: Aoste , formerly ; frp, Aoûta , ''Veulla'' or ''Ouhta'' ; lat, Augusta Praetoria Salassorum; wae, Augschtal; pms, Osta) is the principal city of Aosta Valley, a bilingual region in the Italian Alps, north-northwest of ...
, northern 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 ...
, dedicated to Saint Ursus of Aosta
Saint Ursus of Aosta ( it, Sant'Orso d'Aosta; french: Saint Ours d'Aoste; fl. 6th century) was an Italian evangelist, today venerated as a saint.
Biography
Ursus is an Italian saint of the 6th century. His feast day is February 1 (June 17 in s ...
.
The original church had a single hall, delimited by a semicircular apse. It was entirely rebuilt during the 9th century, during the Carolingian
The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippin ...
age. Later, bishop Anselm of Aosta
Anselm of Canterbury, OSB (; 1033/4–1109), also called ( it, Anselmo d'Aosta, link=no) after his birthplace and (french: Anselme du Bec, link=no) after his monastery, was an Italian Benedictine monk, abbot, philosopher and theologian of the ...
further renovated the church, introducing a basilica plan with three naves with wooden truss
A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure.
In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so that the assembl ...
es. These were replaced by Gothic cross vault
A groin vault or groined vault (also sometimes known as a double barrel vault or cross vault) is produced by the intersection at right angles of two barrel vaults. Honour, H. and J. Fleming, (2009) ''A World History of Art''. 7th edn. London: Lau ...
s in the 15th century.
Description
The church has a nave and two aisles divided by quadrangular pillars. The vault was rebuilt in the 15th century. Fragments of a Romanesque series of paintings are preserved in good condition in the space between the current vault and the original ceiling. These portray scenes from theNew Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
as well as a martyrdom. Stylistically they resemble the bright colours and strongly marked outlines of some of the frescoes at the Galliano Basilica Galliano may refer to:
*Galliano (liqueur), a liqueur
*Galliano (surname)
*Galliano (band), 1980s–1990s UK acid jazz/jazz funk/dance band
*Galliano, a subdivision of Cantù, Italy
*Galliano, Louisiana, United States
*Banco Galliano, also Galliano ...
near Cantù
Cantù (; Brianzöö: ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Como, located at the center of the Brianza zone in Lombardy. It is the second largest city in Brianza.
History
The name could stem from that of the Canturigi, a population of I ...
.
In the right aisles is a chapel housing the altar of St. Sebastian, also with frescoes (15th century).
The cloister
A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...
has historiated
In a written or published work, an initial capital, also referred to as a drop capital or simply an initial cap, initial, initcapital, initcap or init or a drop cap or drop, is a letter at the beginning of a word, a chapter, or a paragraph that ...
capitals depicting the life of Ursus. 37 of the 42 original capital remains: they were originally in white marble, though now they mostly appear in dark gray color after being washed with ash paint.
The quadrangular-plan bell tower, dating to 989, has kept some of the lower of the original medieval structure. The present structure, in Romanesque style, dates to the 12th century and has a total height of .
The church is home to numerous missal
A missal is a liturgical book containing instructions and texts necessary for the celebration of Mass throughout the liturgical year. Versions differ across liturgical tradition, period, and purpose, with some missals intended to enable a pries ...
s and reliquaries
A reliquary (also referred to as a ''shrine'', by the French term ''châsse'', and historically including '' phylacteries'') is a container for relics. A portable reliquary may be called a ''fereter'', and a chapel in which it is housed a ''fer ...
, including the relics
In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...
of Ursus, which rest in the crypt
A crypt (from Latin ''crypta'' "vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, sarcophagi, or religious relics.
Originally, crypts were typically found below the main apse of a chur ...
. It also holds the relics of Saint Gratus of Aosta
Gratus of Aosta ( it, San Grato di Aosta, french: Saint Grat d'Aoste) (d. September 7, c. AD 470) was a bishop of Aosta and is the city's patron saint.
Life
It is thought that both Gratus and Eustasius were of Greek origin and that they receive ...
.
References
External links
Collegiate church and cloister of Saint Ursus
CENOBIUM - The Cloister of Saint Ursus in Aosta
9th-century churches in Italy Churches in Aosta Valley Buildings and structures in Aosta {{Italy-church-stub