The most beautiful religious buildings Italy

It was in this Romanesque church of the 1321 th century, radically reformed in the th century, that the funeral of Dante was celebrated in. During its history, the church was regularly raised because of the collapse of the soil of Ravenna since Antiquity. The original plan of the basilica is 3,6 m below the road level. A window located beneath the main altar shows the crypt of the th century whose original soil is constantly submerged by water, which does not stop admiring the mosaics.

Founded in the 6th century, the Benedictine Abbey of Pomposa is one of the most beautiful in northern Italy. It had an exceptional influence from the 10th to the 12th century thanks to its library and its abbot Guido di Pomposa, who encouraged the invention of modern musical transcription. The pre-Romanesque church is preceded by a portico with three arches, decorated with multicoloured bricks, marble and majolica. It preserves a mosaic floor and a magnificent set of frescoes from the 14th century. Next to the church stands the 48 m high Romanesque bell tower, built in 1063.

Founded in the 4th century, this church was remodeled several times from the 11th century onwards. It has an elegant octagonal tower and a mixture of styles as it has been constantly enlarged and remodelled over the centuries. The interior is baroque, with frescoes by Camillo Gavasetti and paintings by Roberto De Longe. The basilica is also famous for keeping in the presbytery, under the main altar, the relics of Sant'Antonino, patron saint of the city, and of San Vittore, first bishop of Piacenza.

A small architectural jewel of the peninsula, the church of Sant'Agata sui Due Golfi dates back to 1745. There is the statue of the patron saint of the village, in a small side chapel, but above all the precious altar made in 1600, in mother-of-pearl and inlaid marble, by Dioniso Lazzari. The latter, son of the artist who made the altar of Sorrento Cathedral, is the descendant of a prestigious family of Florentine Renaissance craftsmen.

It is the most beautiful religious building in Reggio Emilia. Built in the 16th century, its square is guarded by six imposing lions made of pink Verona marble. The basilica is flanked by a curious octagonal campanile, whose design is said to have been revised by Giulio Romano, a brilliant pupil of Raphael. Inside, the choir and the apse are decorated with a cycle of frescoes by Procaccini (late 16th century): his Last Judgement is said to be inspired by that of Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel. Note also the inlaid stalls of the choir, works of Cremonese masters.

The church of Sant'Andrea al Quirinale was commissioned by the Jesuits in Bernini in 1658 and completed in 1661. Having chosen to organize the space along the small axis of the ellipse, Le Bernin placed concave walls on either side of the porch, which partially hide the building's receding walls. The whole is joyful. This is the work of a single artist, brilliant in his art, executed in a single stroke and a fine example of the aesthetics of that time.