NIGEL'S RAMBLES

Friday, August 23, 2024

Garfagnan

I made a trip over the Apennines into the Garfagnana area east of Lucca. It is an area of Italy that I am very fond of. I had a few places I wanted to visit, but a turn of events changed my destinations.

As I rounded a corner descending down into Tuscany, I was fascinated by a small hamlet clustered around a church set into the mountain. I stopped and grabbed a camera to take a quick look. As I was leaving I said good morning to one of the inhabitants. He offered to show me the inside of the church. He also gave me two locations to see, one of which I will return to when it is open.

Petrognano, Piazza di Serchio, LU

My main photographic objective, on this trip was the Pieve di San Lorenzo, a Pieve on my Romanic project hitlist. San Lorenzo is nothing special inside, but the bell tower is interesting.

Pieve di San Lorenzo,LU

Another destination was a location in the Alpi Apuani, Campocatino was once the summer camp of the local sheep farmers. It is being converted into holiday lets, to save it from dereliction. I had a good lunch here.

Campocatino, LU

Borsigliana, one of the destinations the guy I met earlier, recommended. The medieval door lintel was indeed lovely.

Borsigliana

Borsigliana, LU

Careggine an isolated village in the Alpi Apuani has a very old carving set into the wall of the bell tower. Two very warlike warriors.

Careggine, LU

Finally, I drove up the valley to Monzone, a rather tatty hilltop village. The church is in a spectacular position.

Monzone MS

Monzone, MS

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

Unexpected Bologna

There is lots to explore in Bologna, and and on a recent visit I visited San Giovanni in Monte, with its curious Renaissance façade. Built on an artificial hill, constructed to imitate the Mount of Olives. The church forms part of the nearby Santo Stefano complex. The interior is mostly Gothic. There are wonderful choir stalls behind the altar. Several of the precious paintings including a Raffaello, that this church once contained, are now to be found in various museums, in Italy and abroad

San Giovanni in Monte, Bologna

San Giovanni in Monte

Basilica di Santa Maria dei Servi, was a nice surprise. Lombard Gothic predominates this church, with the red brick ribbed spiders web effect. I wanted to see the painting by Cimabue, but I had to be content with a copy, as it is away on loan.

Basilica di Santa Maria dei Servi, Bologna

Basilica di Santa Maria dei Servi, Bologna

Behind the nineteenth century façade of Saint Vitale Agricola, and below the Baroque church, we descend a flight of stairs and find ourselves in a Paleo Christian crypt that dates back to the year 1000. For a while the church was not consecrated and the crypt was the meeting place of an aristocratic literary circle before disappearing in the nineteenth century. Sever years later when the church was consecrated again and works were being carried out, the crypt remerged. The church is said to be constructed above the Roman arena, where Agricola and his slave Vital were martyred in about 300AD.

One of those little hidden gems that Italian cities conceal, unless you dig them out.

Saint Vitale Agricola, Bologna

Saint Vitale Agricola

Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Bologna Gothic

San Francesco, in Bologna has been on my list of places to see for some time. Here late Romanesque mixes with Lombard Gothic and the first Italian incorporation of French Gothic. It was consecrated in 1251.

The Interior is imposing and austere. The red brickwork contrasts with the plain cream painted walls and ceiling. An ornate alter in the apse, is really the only memorable decoration, in the main church. The apse ends with a series of brightly decorated chapel.

I think I will make another visit to this building as I feel I missed a lot of the things to see on this first visit, including the flying buttresses.

San Francesco, Bologna

They are hard to see and photograph, but this church was one of the first buildings to use the French flying buttress technique.

San Francesco, Bologna

On the Way to San Francesco, I passed the Renaissance Corpus Domini Monastery, with its wonderful Terracotta doorway. Luigi Galvani who discovered biological electricity, is buried here. The interior dates from the Seventeenth century, and badly damaged during the Second World War..