San Martino is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church in

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

, region of Tuscany,

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, facing piazza San Martino, on the left bank of the

Arno The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber. Source and route The river originates on Monte Falterona in the Casentino area of the Apennines, and initially takes a sou ...

river.

History

Documents from 1067 cite a church of "San Martino in Guazzolongo" (name of the quartiere), belonging to the

Augustinian order Augustinians are members of several religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written about 400 A.D. by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–13th ...

. It was rebuilt in 1331, under the commission of Bonifacio Novello della Gherardesca, who wished to endow nuns of an

Order of Saint Clare The Poor Clares, officially the Order of Saint Clare (Latin language, Latin: ''Ordo Sanctae Clarae''), originally referred to as the Order of Poor Ladies, and also known as the Clarisses or Clarissines, the Minoresses, the Franciscan Clarist Or ...

a convent. From 1395, it was considered "cappella del Santissimo Sacramento". The lower façade dates from this epoch, while the superior portion was not completed until 1610.

Description

The rectangular shape is typical of

Franciscan order The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

churches of its time, such as the contemporary churches of San Francesco and Santa Caterina. The remains of a bell-tower are visible. The polychrome ceramic baptismpal font is now found in the

Museo Nazionale di San Matteo The National Museum of San Matteo in Pisa (''Museo Nazionale di San Matteo'') displays works from historic ecclesiastical buildings in the city and Province of Pisa. Collections The works span from early medieval period to the 16th century. The co ...

. The Marble facade has a copy of the bas relief of ''San Martino and the poor man'' attributed to

Andrea Pisano Andrea Pisano (Pontedera 12901348 Orvieto) also known as Andrea da Pontedera, was an Italian sculptor and architect. Biography Pisano initially learned the trade of a goldsmith. He later became an apprentice of Mino di Giovanni, about 1300, a ...

; the original is kept inside. The interior, reconstructed in the 17th century conserves a painted wooden Crucifix by the 13th-century Pisan painter Enrico di Tedice; in the ceiling of the chapel of the Holy Sacrament, there are 14th-century frescoes depicting ''Redeemer and Saints'' by Giovanni di Nicola and

Cecco di Pietro Cecco di Pietro was an Italian painter of the Pisan School. While his date of birth cannot be confirmed, there is some mention of a Cecco Pierri working with the painter Paolo di Lazzarino in 1350. If this was a reference to di Pietro, then his ...

. On the wall are stories of the virgin by Antonio Veneziano. The altars contain a number of prominent works of 17th century painters including

Palma il Giovane Iacopo Negretti (1548/50 – 14 October 1628), best known as Jacopo or Giacomo Palma il Giovane or simply Palma Giovane ('Young Palma'), was an Italian painter from Venice and a notable exponent of the Venetian school. After Tintoretto's death ...

Orazio Riminaldi ''Selfportrait'', Uffizi Orazio Riminaldi (5 September 1593 – 19 December 1630) was an Italian painter who painted mainly history subjects in a Caravaggist style. Biography Riminaldi was born and died in Pisa. He was in Pisa first a pupil of ...

Jacopo Ligozzi Jacopo Ligozzi (1547–1627) was an Italian painter, illustrator, designer, and miniaturist. His art can be categorized as late-Renaissance and Mannerism, Mannerist styles. Biography Born in Verona, he was the son of the artist Giovanni Erma ...

, il

Domenico Passignano Domenico Passignano (1559 – 17 May 1638), born Domenico Cresti or Crespi, was an Italian painter of a late-Renaissance or Counter-''Maniera'' ( Counter-Mannerism) style that emerged in Florence towards the end of the 16th century. Biography ...

and dei Melani. The church contains the funeral monument of Marchese Francesco Del Testa by Giovanni Antonio Cybei with a portrait in marble relief (1780). The church also contains a tomb with the body of Santa Bona kept in a chapel dedicated to her.

References

{{reflist Martino 14th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy 1610 establishments in Italy 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Roman Catholic churches completed in 1610