Church of Saint Mary 'Maggiore'

The collegiate church of Santa Maria Maggiore is located in Alatri (FR) in the square of the same name in the city center. It was built in the 5th century, on the ruins of a temple dedicated to the goddess Venus, and was originally dedicated to the Virgin and the Savior. It is mentioned for the first time in 1137. In the Romanesque period it was enlarged several times, but in the 13th century it underwent a radical transformation by the Burgundian workers, which gave it the Romanesque-Gothic lines visible today. The exterior of the church is characterized by a gabled façade, dating back to the fourteenth century, which has three portals decorated with frescoed lunettes: that of the large central portal, protected by a strong splay, bears a Madonna and Child from the late fourteenth century; the lateral ones are now canceled, as are the frescoes placed between the doors, a San Cristoforo and an Annunciazione, originally protected by a portico supported on the front by four columns which was demolished in the second half of the nineteenth century. Immediately above the central portal is the magnificent rose window: the quadrilateral partition of the elements and the use of the trilobal motif make its design very similar to depictions of rose windows shown in the Livre de Portraiture by Villard de Honnecourt, ca 1235 (preserved in Paris, Bibliothèque nationale); a drawing, among other things, which is faithfully reproduced in scale in the center of the rose window of the nearby church of San Francesco. Above the rose window, in the highest part of the cusp, there is a trilobal arched niche containing a statue of the Baptist, a modern copy of an older one that collapsed in an earthquake in 1654.

Besides being my hometown, it is also very historic, it is like antiquity in the world, it is second after Athens (these photos represent miniature Alatri, an architectural show)

The Collegiate Church of Santa Maria Maggiore is the most interesting place of worship in Alatri, built on the remains of a Roman building in the 5th century, it was subsequently modified in the 13th century and retains its current appearance. Its interior is very sober but preserves priceless works of art.

Magnificent church overlooking the homonymous square its origins date back to the 5th century AD which was built above the ruins of a pre-existing pagan temple is one of the most important monuments of Alatri the façade has a large rose window an imposing bell tower and a wonderful facade. The interior in Roman Gothic style has three naves supported by imposing pillars the works of art are many of great value and value

Church that can be seen from the valley, overlooking Ferentino, Gothic church, simple but seggestive, reachable on foot from the center

The splendid church of Santa Maria Maggiore overlooks the square of the same name, in the heart of the historic city center where the Forum was located in Roman times. It can be reached on foot, leaving the car outside the city gates (the closest is Porta S. Francesco). Erected on the ruins of a pagan sanctuary, it was an early Christian church in the 5th century, dedicated to the Virgin of the Savior. At the base of the northern elevation, there are remains of polygonal walls and inside, set on the reverse, a Roman tombstone (Republican age) was reused, found on site, which mentions two brothers (Marco and Caio Betilieno), officials of the treasury money that was kept in the temple of Jupiter. You can see it very well, this upside-down inscription, in the lower part of the first pillar of the left aisle, put in place during the medieval reconstruction. Which was not the only one, as the building underwent other restoration interventions. A wonderful 14th century rose window winks outside. We are obliged to mention, among the numerous works of art in the church, a work that fascinated us most of all, perhaps also because it is encountered as soon as you enter, on the left, in a chapel protected by a gate. . It is the so-called Madonna of Constantinople, a wooden work of Byzantine influence, whose dating ranges from 1100-1200. The author is unknown. The masterpiece is completed with two side panels that served as protective doors of the statue, when it was kept in its original niche and where it was exhibited for the veneration of the faithful. The Virgin with her Child, already a small boy and received between his knees, are both crowned. Their gaze seems fixed in the void, in contemplation of the Mystery of the Trinity of which it is the incarnation. There are several details that make her special, including the fact that she holds a symbolic egg in her left hand.