San Ferdinando, Livorno
San Ferdinando is a
History
In 1653, the mendicant
By the 19th-century this structure was at risk of collapsing and razed. Construction of the church of San Ferdinando was commissioned by the early 1707 under designs of Giovanni Battista Foggini, and completed nearly ten years later by Giovanni del Fantasia. The church was dedicated to St Ferdinand, King of Castille, the medieval scourge of Al-Andalus, in part to recognize the initial patronage of Prince Ferdinando, son of Granduke Cosimo III. However, the death of Ferdinado in 1713, forced the Trinitarians to raise further money for its construction. The church was consecrated in November 1717 and was restored after the 1742 and 1824 earthquakes. The exterior facade is plain without marble sheathing; the interior, however, is highly decorated in a baroque style.
Interior
The layout is that of a Latin cross. The masterpiece inside the church is the main altar's sculptural group depicting the Liberated Slaves by Giovanni Baratta, depicting an angel with one liberated and one still chained slave.[1]
The church has two chapels on each side. The first altar on right is dedicated to the Blessed Giovan Battista della Concezione dei Trinitari. The second on the right is dedicated to the canonized founders of the order
Another chapel is dedicated
Suppressed by Napoleon in 1808, the parish remained without clerics till 1848. In August 1853, the trinitarians re-acquired the parish and convent. It later became an elementary school. During the Second World War, the Venezia Nuova district was heavily bombed, and the church suffered destruction of the bell-tower and some chapels, but underwent reconstruction.[2]
References
- ^ Guida storica ed artistica della città e dei dintorni di Livorno, by Giuseppe Piombanti Forni Editore, Bologna 1903, pages 199-203.
- ^ Catholic World, Volume 74 page 629 San Michele dei Santi, Livorno. by Montgomery Carmicheal.
43°33′15″N 10°18′19″E / 43.5541°N 10.3052°E