Abbey of San Mercuriale, Forlì

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The Basilica Abbey of San Mercuriale is the main religious building in Forlì, in Romagna (northern Italy); the rather smaller cathedral was largely destroyed by fire in the 19th century.

History and overview

A first church was built here in the 4th century, dedicated to

The current edifice was finished in 1180 in

The abbey, which once was located outside the ancient Roman city, was included in a new line of walls in that period. In the 15th century the Vallumbrosans' cloister was annexed to the construction: it has a rectangular shape and is decorated by slender columns, with a central well that can still be seen.

The apse of the church was rebuilt in 1585. Of the same period is also the wooden choir, designed by Alessandro Bigni from Bergamo. The façade and the bell tower are in brickwork. The former is decorated with arcades supported by columns. The magnificent rose window over the main portal portrays the Epiphany with Dream and Adoration of the Magi, and is attributed to the so-called Master of the Months, who was active also in the cathedral of Ferrara.

The interior houses numerous works of art. The most famous is the Sepulchre of

• Ferri Chapel, with an arcade in Istrian stone by Jacopo Bianchi from Ulcinj, with fine decorations and grottesche in Lombard style.
• Paintings by Marco Palmezzano portraying: Madonna Enthroned with Saints John the Evangelist and Catherine of Alexandria, Crucifix with St John Gualbertus and the Magdalene and the Madonna with Saints Anselm, Augustine and Stephen, one of his finest works.
• Mercuriali Chapel, with stuccoes and frescoes by
  Girolamo Mercuriali, with his son Massimiliano, to honour the Saints Girolamo and Mercuriale. The chapel was finished in 1606, the same year of the death of Mercuriali who wanted to be buried in it.^[1]
• Sacrament Chapel

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to San Mercuriale (Forlì).

• The treasures of San Mercuriale in a video by Forlì TV

44°13′20″N 12°2′30″E / 44.22222°N 12.04167°E / 44.22222; 12.04167