Italy, Montella, Irpinia, the artistic treasures

Montella, Irpinia (Campania – Italy) is not only famous for its chestnuts but also for its artistic treasures. Saint Francis of Assisi passed through these parts during his travels around Italy.

Thus a church was built next to which over the centuries other buildings arose until it became a convent: the convent of San Francesco in Folloni. At the behest of the same saint, the church was dedicated to the Santissima Annunziata. It was January 1222.

The FAI, which has made it one of its favorite places, describes the complex as follows: “The first thirteenth-century building must have been located where the building housing the friars’ cells is now located. In the 15th century, the second church was built, with a single nave with numerous side chapels. The refectory, now the library, was built between the thirteenth-century church, integrated into the convent, and the fifteenth-century one. The current architectural complex is the result of a renewed building intervention in the mid-eighteenth century, which became necessary following the earthquake of 1732”.