The Churches |
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The Main Church | ||
Its construction began after the 1783 earthquake thanks to Maria Antonia Grimaldi, daughter and heir
of Maria Teresa, Princess of Gerace, who died under the earthquake rubble and was later buried in the
Chapel of the Immacolata. |
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The Church of the Holy Rosary (SS.Rosario) | ||
This church was built in 1820, commissioned by Don Domenico Maria Siciliani. The façade is embellished by the statue of the Madonna, a work by Francesco Jerace. [to be continued >>>] |
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The church of San Rocco | ||
The construction of this church began in around 1835 under request of Vincenzo Zito and the plan of
the architect Vincenzo Tarsitani. It was completed by Don Girolamo Pietropaolo after almost 70 years
and the original plan was also modified. The façade had been originally planned to face the road that
lead to the 'Passo del Mercante' and joined the town with the Ionian coast. This is the largest of all the
churches of the area. The paintings are by Prof. Giuseppe R. Moretti (1868-1930). The organ of the church |
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The Holy Family Church | ||
Its building goes back to the year 1887. It was built in just 32 months upon request by Donna Rosa Tarsitani. [to be continued >>>] |
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The church of the Madonna della Catena (Madonna of the Chain) | ||
This church was built following the cholera epidemic of 1854 on the site of the little church of S.Maria di Campoforano. The idea to build this church is accredited to archpriest D. Domenico Luzio (between 1854 and 1860). S.Maria of Campoforano had been erected by the villagers of nearby Morgeto. [to be continued >>>] |
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Other Churches | ||
The other churches are those in honor of the saints Cosma and Damiano. The church of S. Giuseppe built near the church of S.Francesco destroyed by the 1783 earthquake. The church of Calvario built in 1912 by architect Domenico Avenoso. In the hamlet of Malizia there is the church of Madonna delle Grazie e Misericordia where a 1901 painting by the Messina artist Giuseppe Bonaccorso can be seen. In this small church there is also a painting of the same Madonna but from the Neapolitan art school. The church bells have different dates, 1752 on one and 1818 on the other. (translation by Martino De Marco)
Nativo di San Martino (Reggio Calabria) e residente in Adelaide, dove ha conseguito una laurea in lettere, Martino De Marco esercita la professione di traduttore ed interprete. Appassionato della sua "Piccola Patria" lontana, De Marco da anni ha voluto conoscere meglio
la Calabria, facendo anche varie ricerche in internet. Il primo luglio 2005 è stato presentato in Adelaide la versione in inglese del romanzo, "Valpatri House" di Nadia Crucitti, tradotta appunto da De Marco e stampata localmente in tiratura ridottissima. Il lancio di questo "atto di affetto" e disponibilità professionale è stato fatto nel corso di una serata culturale organizzata per l'occasione. Ha presentato il libro la dottoressa Maria Grazia Re, direttrice didattica del Consolato d'Italia, alla presenza di personalità del mondo della cultura, delle istituzioni e dell'associazionismo locale. |