SHARRYLAND
The stories of stone, San Donnino in Fidenza
The cathedral of San Donnino, a masterpiece of Benedetto Antelami and a marvel of Romanesque architecture in northern Italy
Where is
What is it and where is Fidenza Cathedral.
The church of San Donnino stands on a beautiful cobblestone square in the center of town. It has a Romanesque, gabled façade, clad in marble and sandstone in the lower part and flanked by two towers; the apse, which is instead affected by Gothic interventions, is crowned by a slender loggia and a decoration of interlaced hanging arches. The interior has three naves with cross vaults and a raised altar. Below is the crypt, where the relics of St. Donnino are kept .
Why it's special: stories carved in stone
The splendor of this church is in the very rich exterior sculptural decoration by Antelami and collaborators. On the left tower we see Herod ordering the slaughter of the innocents and the Magi on horseback; on the right tower we see the dangers of pilgrimage (from ferocious beasts to seduction), and pilgrims, on horseback and on foot. On the tympanum of the left portal is Charlemagne enthroned, witness to the Ghibelline faith of Fidenza, and then Pope Adrian II with the city's bishop and a sick man healed by the relics of St. Donnino. On the right doorway, above is St. Raymond with hood, staff, and basket. In the arch are animals enclosed in circles of vines, on either side Hercules and the lion and a griffin seizing a deer.
Not to be missed: the sculptures of the central portal.
Around the central portal, the best of the decoration is gathered: on the left the adoration of the Magi, below the stories of St. Donnino. In the niche one of the most beautiful statues of the Romanesque period, King David, by the hand of Antelami. To the right, from above, biblical stories and a miracle from the relics of St. Donninus. In the niche is the beautiful prophet Ezekiel. The central portal has in the arch Christ among prophets and apostles and below a frieze continuing the stories of St. Donninus. Curious is the last scene that tells the tradition that St. Donninus carries his head in his hand.
Who was Saint Donnino
According to tradition Donninus was a Roman soldier who was dismissed and then beheaded because of his conversion to Christianity. After being beheaded, the saint crossed the Stirone River and lay down among the trees: there the church later arose. This story should describe the remains preserved in the crypt of the church in Fidenza, however, an analysis of the body revealed no evidence of neck injuries.
Curiosity: the months or seasons of the apse.
Not to be missed are the slabs walled in the apse; according to some, the months of the year that survived the demolition of a side portal are represented there; according to others, they are the seasons. Tasty is the depiction of January with the cauldron on the fire and sausages hanging.
A bit of history
The church has developed over the centuries: after the 1117 earthquake it was rebuilt in Romanesque forms over the previous destroyed one; towards the end of the 12th century Benedetto Antelami built the vaulted roof and the new facade, which, however, called back to Parma for the cathedral, he left unfinished; finally, in the last years of the 13th century the apse was rebuilt in Gothic forms and the ribbed structure added inside.
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