San Niccolò 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 located on Via Pompeiana 25 in the town of

Osimo Osimo is a town and ''comune'' of the Marche region of Italy, in the province of Ancona. The municipality covers a hilly area located approximately south of the port city of Ancona and the Adriatic Sea. History The oldest archaeological evide ...

, in the

province of Ancona The province of Ancona () is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Marche region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Ancona, and the province borders the Adriatic Sea. The city of Ancona is also the capital of Marche. To the north, the province ...

, region of

Marche Marche ( ; ), in English sometimes referred to as the Marches ( ) from the Italian name of the region (Le Marche), is one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. The region is located in the Central Italy, central area of the country, ...

, Italy.

History

A 10th-century church was located at the site prior to the major reconstruction during 1646-1649 leading to the present structure. The church was originally attached to a

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

convent. Traces of that Romanesque building remain in a chapel frescoed by

Pietro di Domenico Pietro di Domenico, also Pietro di Domenico da Siena, (1457–1506) was an Italian Renaissance painter. Not much is known about Pietro di Domenico's life except through his works. He was born, worked, and lived all his life in Siena, and his sty ...

of Montepulciano, in the chapel of the Crucifix, and in the crypt. The Benedictines moved to the other abbey in town by the early 15th century. The church became a parish church, sometimes serving as the Duomo during the tumultuous late 1400s caused by the rebellion of Boccolino da Guzzone. In 1536 the church was assigned to Observant

Poor Clares 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 ...

, under whom the church was rebuilt. In the cloistered portion of the convent is a

crucifix A crucifix (from the Latin meaning '(one) fixed to a cross') is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the (Latin for 'body'). The cru ...

said to have miraculously bled during the Guelf and Ghibbeline wars in 1318. It is open on

Saint Lucy's Day Saint Lucy's Day, also called the Feast of Saint Lucy, is a Christian feast day observed on 13 December. The observance commemorates Lucia of Syracuse, an early-fourth-century virgin martyr under the Diocletianic Persecution. According to l ...

. In 1810, under the Napoleonic government, the nuns were expelled until 1822; they were again expelled for a year in 1866. The Convent of San Niccolò in 2016 is inhabited by cloistered Clarissan nuns.Monastery of Clarissans of Osimo
official site.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Niccolo Osimo 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Roman Catholic churches in Osimo Roman Catholic churches completed in 1699 1699 establishments in Italy