San Michele Arcangelo, also known as Sant'Angelo, is a paleo-Christian temple in the city of

Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part o ...

Umbria it, Umbro (man) it, Umbra (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , ...

. The circular building dates to the 5th to 6th century, and incorporates corinthian capped columns from a prior pagan temple. It is dedicated to the

Archangel Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

, whose churches were often located in elevated spots. The small round church is also often called ''Tempio'' or ''Tempietto'', and is located in the neighborhood Borgo Sant'Angelo, near the ancient northern gate (Porta Sant'Angelo) of the city. The structure of the church has been altered across the centuries; in 1479, it was converted into a small fort. A major restoration occurred in 1948 that revealed ancient frescoes and sealed windows. The architecture is an early Romanesque with

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

influences in the chapel placement, but the circular temple is something seen in other ancient churches in central Italy, including the church of Sant'Ercolano and of San Giovanni Rotondo in Perugia. It recalls the church of

Santo Stefano Rotondo The Basilica of St. Stephen in the Round on the Celian Hill ( it, Basilica di Santo Stefano al Monte Celio, la, Basilica S. Stephani in Caelio Monte) is an ancient basilica and titular church in Rome, Italy. Commonly named Santo Stefano Rotondo, ...

(460-480) in Rome.

Interior

The interior has a circumferential

ambulatory The ambulatory ( la, ambulatorium, ‘walking place’) is the covered passage around a cloister or the processional way around the east end of a cathedral or large church and behind the high altar. The first ambulatory was in France in the 11th ...

delimited by sixteen columns with corinthian capitals. The interior has some notable early Christian symbolism, including a pentagram at the entrance and some crosses belonging to

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

order.Wiki of Comuni Italiani
entry on Tempietto.

References

{{Authority control Angelo Perugia Angelo Perugia Angelo Perugia Angelo Perugia Buildings and structures completed in the 6th century