San Valeriano is a Romanesque-style

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 Francigena 43-95 in the town of

Robbio Robbio is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pavia in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 50 km southwest of Milan and about 45 km west of Pavia. It is part of Lomellina traditional region. Robbio borders the ...

, province of Pavia,

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 ...

History

A church at the site is documented since the 12th century, when it was part of 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 ...

order Cluniac monastery which stood along the pilgrimage route to Rome, known as the

Via Francigena The Via Francigena (), also known as Francisca or Romea, is an ancient road and Christian pilgrimage, pilgrimage route running from the City status in the United Kingdom#Cathedral towns, cathedral city of Canterbury in England, through France and ...

. The monastery suffered much over the centuries; one inscription notes the monastery was destroyed in 1216. Built with brick, the church has three naves and the three apses ends in a typical Romanesque hemicycles. The monastery buildings are no longer extant. There are no remains of a former belltower, which was still present in the 16th century. The church is dedicated to St Valerian, a bishop martyred in Tunisia by

Genseric Gaiseric ( – 25 January 477), also known as Geiseric or Genseric (; reconstructed Vandalic: ) was king of the Vandals and Alans from 428 to 477. He ruled over a kingdom and played a key role in the decline of the Western Roman Empire during ...

in 460. The relics of this Pre-Schism western saint were putatively brought to

Pavia Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was a major polit ...

, and then to Robbio. The church was deconsecrated centuries ago, and for a time used as a warehouse or barracks. There is no internal decoration.Commune of Robbio
entry on church.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Valeriano Churches in the province of Pavia Romanesque architecture in Lombardy 12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy