All Churches in Arezzo

The Cathedral of Santi Pietro e Donato is the Cathedral of Arezzo, located in Piazza del Duomo, on top of the San Pietro Hill.   SHORT HISTORY An important event, which contributed to the construction of the Cathedral, was the visit to Arezzo of Pope Gregorio X, which took place on December 20, 1275, on his return from the Council of Lyon. The Pope, seriously ill, died in Arezzo on January 10, leaving the sum of thirty gold florins for the building of the new Cathedral. In 1277, the decree of bishop Guglielmo degli Ubertini was promulgated, which stated the desire to build a church “to the honor of God, of the Blessed Virgin and of the patron Saint Donatus”. In 1289, the year of the Battle of Campaldino, the church, already consecrated, presented a fully built apse and the first two bays. In 1384, when Arezzo was annexed to the Tuscan state dominated by Florence, the construction of the Cathedral was stopped. The works were resumed only in 1471, and were completed in 1511. In the early 17th century, following the new rules of the Council of Trent, a modernization operation was carried out, with the renewal of the Read more [...]

The Church of Santa Maria della Pieve is a Romanesque church in Arezzo, located in Corso Italia, with the apse facing Piazza Grande.   SHORT HISTORY The first documented information about a church in this area dates back to the year 1008. However, the current structure was begun in the 12th century, thanks to the funds provided by the Municipality of Arezzo. In the 13th century, a new facade was built, while the high bell-tower was completed only in 1330. During the 16th century and later, the interior of the church was modified with stucco and Baroque-style decorations. In the 19th century, a renovation eliminated all the Baroque decorations, with the aim of restoring the church to its original Romanesque appearance.   ARCHITECTURE The facade overlooking Corso Italia, rebuilt in the 13th century, has three loggias supported by small columns. The two lower loggias are arched, and the third is surmounted by an architrave. The apse overlooking Piazza Grande is divided vertically into three superimposed orders – the first is made up of blind arches, while the second and the third of loggias. The church has four portals, three on the main facade, separated by blind arches, and one on Read more [...]

The Basilica of San Domenico is a Gothic church in Arezzo, located in the homonymous square, in the northern part of the historical center of the city.   SHORT HISTORY The church was built in Romanesque style starting with 1275, and completed in the 14th century. Important changes inside the church were made in the second part of the 16th century, when new altars were added and the frescoed walls were painted white. In 1782, after the reform of religious orders in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the church was abandoned until the beginning of the 20th century. During the restoration works from the 1920s, the altars added in the 16th century were removed, and the frescoes of the 13th and 14th centuries were recovered. The construction of the porch in front of the entrance was completed in 1936 on a project by Giuseppe Castellucci. The porch was built to protect the fresco in the lunette above the entrance door.   ARCHITECTURE The asymmetrical facade, in masonry, includes a bell-gable with two bells. The interior of the church, with a single nave and a trussed roof, takes light from 12 single-light windows. As you approach the apse, the distance between Read more [...]

The Church of Sant’Agostino is a church in Arezzo, dedicated to Saint Augustine, located in the homonymous square.   SHORT HISTORY The mendicant Order of Hermits of Saint Augustine was approved in 1256 by Pope Alexander IV. One year later, the Augustinian friars laid the first stone for the construction of their church in Arezzo. The first church was small in size, and for this reason, in 1330, it was decided to build a larger church. The new church, with three naves, was completed in 1341. However, the religious complex, which also included a large convent, remained incomplete until the 15th century. Only in 1491, the works were resumed and all the structures were finished. Between the end of the 14th century and the early 16th century, the church was embellished with splendid cycles of frescoes and paintings. All the works disappeared between 1761 and 1766, when the interior of the church was transformed in Baroque and Rococo styles, on a project by Filippo Giustini. The facade and the quadrangular bell-tower, both dating back to the 15th century, were spared by the transformation. The tip of the bell-tower was damaged by lightning in 1825, and was rebuilt in the 1920s. Read more [...]

The Church of Santi Lorentino e Pergentino is a small church in Arezzo, located along the former ancient Roman road which connected Chiusi to Florence.   SHORT HISTORY Some historians cite the ancient Passion of Saints Lorentino and Pergentino, dating back to the 6th century, to identify the church as the place of burial of two Christian martyrs, Lorentino and Pergentino, beheaded on June 3, 250, by emperor Decius. Little information exists regarding what happened with the church between the burial of the martyrs and the Middle Ages. A document from 1135 shows that the church belonged to the Benedictine monastery of Saints Flora and Lucilla. In the year 1204, the parish was given to the monks of Camaldoli, to compensate the sale of the Church of San Pier Piccolo. They took care of the church from 1252 until the 16th century. In 1663, it seems that, of the entire complex, only the church remained. Later, the church was abandoned and reduced to a barn. This process of continuous decay up to the loss of the entire western part, that of the facade, and the nearby construction of numerous huts and buildings of little value, continued until 1970, when the Read more [...]