Santa Corona Church

Vicenza, Italy

Construction on the Santa Corona church was begun in 1261 by the Blessed (Beato) Bishop Bartolomeo di Breganze to house a thorn from the supposed relic of the crown (corona) of thorns forced on Jesus during his passion. The thorn had been given to this bishop as a gift from Louis IX of France. The church belonged to the Dominican order until suppression during the Napoleonic era.

The church has an altarpiece depicting, the Baptism of Christ (1500-1502) by Giovanni Bellini. The Thiene chapel has frescos by Michelino da Besozzo, and an altarpiece depicting an Enthroned Madonna and child venerated by Saints Peter and Pius V by Gianbattista Pittoni. Other works in the church include an Adoration of the Magi’’ by Veronese, a Madonna of the Star‘ by Marcello Fogolino, a St Mary Magdalen with Saints Jerome, Paola and Monica, (1414-1415) by Bartolomeo Montagna, a canvas depicting St Anthony and friars distributing alms to poor (1518) by Leandro Bassano, and two canvases with depictions of St Sebastian and St Martin by Battista da Vicenza.

Valmarana Chapel

After the death of one of his patrons, Antonio Valmarana, likely in 1576, Palladio designed this funereal chapel. Santa Corona had already been the church were other members of the family had been interred. Ten years earlier, Palladio had designed the Palazzo Valmarana in town for the family. The chapel was constructed by 1597, and family members transferred here. While there is no documentary evidence linking this design to Palladio, it highly resembles his chapels found at the Il Redentore in Venice.

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Details

Founded: 1261
Category: Religious sites in Italy

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

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4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Marlon Rossi (4 months ago)
Stunning church, I was amazed by the quality of the details made with marble/granite
Kristýna Vacardová (5 months ago)
It's a bit ironic to have to pay to enter a church. It's okay, but it's probably a better idea to spend your money differently in Vicenza.
Artemiy Kovalenko (10 months ago)
Santa Corona is a must-see destination for those visiting Vicenza. A beautiful Gothic church from the 13th century. There's an altarpiece added later and depicting the Baptism of Christ. It was created by the famous Giovanni Bellini and that took him two years to accomplish. There are lots of other frescos worth seeing created by famous Italian artists. One particularly fascinating aspect of Santa Corona is the reliquary containing fragments of the True Cross, which is said to have been discovered by St. Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine, during her pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The reliquary is made of silver and gold and is decorated with intricate patterns and images of saints.
Stefanos Noutsias (3 years ago)
Another "must see" here in Vicenza. The church contains the Valmarana chapel (circa 1576), whose design is attributed to the Renaissance Architect Andrea Palladio. Palladio himself was initially buried in this church. Construction on the church was begun in 1261 to house a thorn from the supposed relic of the crown (corona) of thorns forced on Jesus during his his passion.
Karen Leschper (3 years ago)
So very beautiful!
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