Church of San Paolo a Ripa d’Arno

The Church of San Paolo a Ripa d’Arno (Saint Paul on the Bank of the Arno), is a Romanesque-style church in Pisa, located on the Lungarno Sidney Sonnino, in the homonymous square.

SHORT HISTORY

The church was built around the year 925, and is attested in documents dating back to 1032. The associated convent was documented since 1147.

The church and the monastery belonged to the Benedictine monks until 1092, when it was given to the Vallumbrosan monks. In the mid-12th century, it was enlarged in similar forms to the contemporary Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta.

Later, the church and the monastery were entrusted to the cardinal Landolfo Marramauro and, in the 16th century, it was assigned to the Order of the Knights of Saint Stephen. After the suppression of the order, the church became a parish.

In the 19th century, several restorations were made, but the building suffered some damage during the Second World War and was therefore restored again between 1949 and 1952. Just as a result of the post-war interventions, most of the buildings adjacent to the church were demolished.

In 2012, it was closed due to precarious conditions. Restoration started in October 2016, thanks to a crowdfunding campaign in which 151,572€ were collected. The restoration was completed in May 2018, and the religious activity resumed in March 2019.

ARCHITECTURE

The structure, listed among the masterpieces of the Pisan Romanesque style, has an Egyptian cross plan with three naves divided by columns in granite, with a dome at the crossing with the transept.

The two-gabled facade, designed in the 12th century, but completed in the 14th century probably by Giovanni Pisano, has pilasters, blind arches, marble inlays and three orders of loggias in the upper section.

HOW TO GET THERE

The Church of San Paolo a Ripa d’Arno is located about 800 meters away from the Pisa railway station. The closest bus stop is San Paolo a Ripa d’Arno, located in front of the church, on the bus Lines 6 and 21.