Santa Croce is a Gothic style, Roman Catholic church in Piazza Mazzini, in the center of

Bastia Umbra Bastia Umbra () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Perugia in the Italian region Umbria, located about 15 km southeast of Perugia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 20,523 and an area of 27.6 km2.All demograph ...

, in the region of

Umbria Umbria ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region of central Italy. It includes Lake Trasimeno and Cascata delle Marmore, Marmore Falls, and is crossed by the Tiber. It is the only landlocked region on the Italian Peninsula, Apennine Peninsula. The re ...

, Italy.

History

The church was originally built alongside a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

monastery. The monastery had once housed the tomb of the Blessed Corrado da Offida, but the relics were moved by Perugian overlords to the church of San Francesco al Prato in

Perugia Perugia ( , ; ; ) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area. It has 162,467 ...

. It was originally built outside the city walls of the then town of Isola, and not encompassed until the defenses of the town were rebuilt and expanded in 1380. In 1653, the monastery was suppressed by

Pope Innocent X Pope Innocent X (6 May 1574 – 7 January 1655), born Giovanni Battista Pamphilj (or Pamphili), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 September 1644 to his death, in January 1655. Born in Rome of a family fro ...

, and the church became a parish and priory. In 1788,

Pope Pius VI Pope Pius VI (; born Count Angelo Onofrio Melchiorre Natale Giovanni Antonio called Giovanni Angelo or Giannangelo Braschi, 25 December 171729 August 1799) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 February 1775 to hi ...

, at the request of Bishop Carlo Zangheri established a college of nine canons in Santa Croce. Earthquakes from 1832 and 1854 made the bell-tower collapse. Restoration was pursued starting in 1855 giving the church the present form. The church formerly had early 16th-century frescoes by Tiberio d'Assisi painted in the apse, but it was torn down during restoration. In 1962, the parish church of the town was moved to the new adjacent church of San Michele Arcangelo.

Description

The main portal is decorated by carved wood reliefs depicting the

Via Crucis The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

(1942), by Domenico Mammoli. The polychrome flooring with geometric designs was laid in 1932. The interiors of the church were decorated between 1884 and 1886 by Domenico Bruschi with tempera wall paintings, including the apse dome with God the Father, Jesus Christ blessing the Madonna, and Saints John the Baptist, Peter, and Paul. The spandrels depict the four evangelists. Inside the church walls are detached frescoes moved here from other sites. In one of the chapels is the ''Polyptych of Sant’Angelo'' (1499) by

Niccolò Alunno Niccolò di Liberatore, known as L'Alunno (also Niccolò di Liberatore and Niccolò da Foligno; the name is sometimes spelled Nicolò) (1430–1502) was an Italian painter of the Umbrian school. Life and career He was born at Foligno, the son o ...

; the painting was formerly the main altarpiece of the former Church of Sant’Angelo. In the apse walls are a detached fresco (formerly at the church of Sant'Angelo) depicting the ''Enthroned Madonna and Child'' and a ''St Luke'' (1510–1512) by Tiberio d’Assisi. Other works in the church are:Visit Bastia Umbria tourism site
* ''Baptism of Jesus'' (mid 19th century) by Decio Trabalza. * ''Polyptych of the Holy Cross'' (1885) by Domenico Bruschi . * ''Supper at Emmaus (1886) by Domenico Bruschi . * ''St Helen and St Michael Archangel'' (1903) Stained glass windows by the Francesco Moretti assisted by his nephew Ludovico Caselli; * ''St Anthony the Abbot heals a cripple and exorcises a possessed woman'' (first half of 17th century) by

Cesare Sermei Cesare Sermei (Città della Pieve, – Assisi, 1668) was an Italian painter. Son of painter Fernando Sermei, he learned to paint in the workshop of Cesare Nebbia, primarily moving between Orvieto and Rome. In 1608 Sermei established himself i ...

, from the high altar of the demolished Church of St Anthony the Abbot. * ''Madonna and Child Jesus'' (16th century) fresco attributed to

Dono Doni Dono Doni, also known as Adone Doni or Dono dei Doni (1505-1575) was an Italian painter of the Renaissance period active mainly in Umbria. Biography Doni was born at Assisi. While Luigi Lanzi, Lanzi and others claim he was a disciple of Pietro ...

* Frescoes in the Chapel of St John the Baptist (1884–1886) by Bruschi

References

{{coord, 43.06785, 12.54993, format=dms, type:landmark_region:IT, display=title Churches in the province of Perugia Roman Catholic churches in Umbria Gothic architecture in Umbria 14th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Bastia Umbra