Santa Maria or Santa Maria a Campi 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 let ...

parish church located on Via Spartaco Lavagnini #26 in

Campi Bisenzio Campi Bisenzio is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region Tuscany, located about northwest of Florence. History The word Campi in the municipality's name stems from the fields which are widespread i ...

, just west of

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...

, in the region of

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

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 ...

History

A church at the site was first documented in 1270 or perhaps as early as the 12th century. The church was dedicated to the Assumption of Mary, and built with facade facing west and the apse in the east. It lay on the road from Pistoia to Florence. The church has undergone reconstructions and expansions over the years. The oldest portions are the apse and its chapels of St James and St Anthony of Padua. The church at some point incorporated a statue of

Saint Roch Roch (lived c. 1348 – 15/16 August 1376/79 (traditionally c. 1295 – 16 August 1327, also called Rock in English, is a Catholic saint, a confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August and 9 September in Italy; he is especially invoked a ...

, carved in the 15th century, in search of help for the plague. This led to the formation of a confraternity of St Roch, which built an oratory in what is now the right aisle, but incorporated into the church proper during the 18th century. Also in the 18th century, a new bell-tower was erected next to the apse. A major reconstruction took place during 1953-1962, led by Ferdinando Ghelli. In 1991–1992, the front portico was added.

Interior

To the left of the entrance is a

pietra serena Pietra serena is a blue-gray sandstone used extensively in Renaissance Florence for architectural details. It is also known as Macigno stone. The material obtained at Fiesole is considered the best and is also quarried at Arezzo, Cortona, and Volt ...

altar (1640) designed by Domenico Roti and dedicated to the Madonna del Carmelo. The altar frames a 14th-century fresco of the ''virgin and Child between St John the Baptist and St Lawrence''. The stone choir dates to the second half of the 16th century. The Chapel of St James was frescoed circa 1430 by Mariotto di Cristofano, brother-in-law of

Masaccio Masaccio (, , ; December 21, 1401 – summer 1428), born Tommaso di Ser Giovanni di Simone, was a Florentine artist who is regarded as the first great Italian painter of the Quattrocento period of the Italian Renaissance. According to Vasari, ...

. On the chapel ceiling are frescoes depicting the four Evangelists. On the right wall of the Chapel, in the tabernacle is a 15th-century fresco depicting an ''Enthroned Madonna among the Saint James and St Margaret of Antioch''. The fresco and the altar were commissioned by the Cianamelli (today Ciaramelli) family; the church in the past was a stop for pilgrims on the road to

Santiago de Compostela Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of St ...

. In a wall once belonging to the dining hall of the pilgrim hostel associated with the church, a fresco depicts the ''Last Supper'' (circa 1450) attributed to Stefano di Antonio di Vanni. A painted crucifix (16th-century) is attributed to followers of

Benedetto da Maiano Benedetto da Maiano (1442 – May 24, 1497) was an Italian Early Renaissance sculptor. Biography Born in the village of Maiano (now part of Fiesole), he started his career as companion of his brother, the architect Giuliano da Maiano. When he ...

. The altar of St Roch has a ''Madonna of the Assumption with Saints Roch, Agatha, Sebastian and Maria Maddalena dei Pazzi'' (1625) by Giovanni Gargiolli. The Chapel of the Annunciation has a crucifix attributed to followers of

Giambologna Giambologna (1529 – 13 August 1608), also known as Jean de Boulogne (French), Jehan Boulongne (Flemish) and Giovanni da Bologna (Italian), was the last significant Italian Renaissance sculptor, with a large workshop producing large and small ...

. A modern painting of the ''Annunciation'' (1993) was painted by Antonio Manzi.Comune of Campi Bisenzio
entry on church.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maria Campi Bisenzio 13th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Churches in the metropolitan city of Florence