Churches in Emilia Romagna: the most beautiful façades

Church of Santa Maria Assunta (Parma) | Ph. © acri.it

Place: Parma
Year: built before 1074, finished in 1178 (decorations changed until 16th century)
Architectural style: Romanesque art

Together with the adjacent Baptistery, Parma Cathedral is, for sure, one of the most important witnesses of the Romanesque art in the area of the Po Valley. Its architectural structure is particularly complex, as proved by the works, lasted for almost four centuries (11^th–16^th century).

Great artists worked to its construction, starting with the most eminent Romanesque sculptor Benedetto Antelami (1150–1230 or so) and the genius of Baroque art Antonio Allegri, so-called Correggio (1489 – 1534).

The gabled façade is made of solid stone and divided into three orders, placed one on the other.

At the height of the first order are three entrance gates to the cathedral. The central one is worth a mention: It features the prothyrum with lions at the base, created in 1281 by Giambono da Bissone. On the lower part is a sculpted sequence dating back to the first decades of the 12^th century; the bass-relief features the succession of the months, starting with March. The second order is composed of two tiers of small loggias with three-mullioned windows and little Verona marble columns. Lastly, the third order is a gallery that follows the roof sloping.

Church of San Giorgio (Ferrara) | Pic @3impact, Wikimedia

Place: Ferrara
Year: From the 12^th century, completed in the 17^th century
Architectural style: Romanesque and Gothic art

Monument symbol of the city of Ferrara, the Cathedral of San Giorgio is the perfect combination of historical periods that marked the Este capital across the centuries.

Born from maestro Nicholaus, several artists contributed to the final result, such as the apsis designed by Biagio Rossetti or the bell tower created by Leon Battista Alberti, which was left incomplete.

The façade of this peculiar three-pinnacle structure is a real masterpiece. Dating back to 1135, it is a mix of captivating alchemical symbols, numbers, and recurring, sacred geometrical shapes that have always fascinated curious and scholars.

If you watch carefully the façade, you will notice the abundance of natural intertwined elements that cover the whole Christian building: it’s an alchemical nature that turns the church into a gigantic tree of life.

You will clearly notice two different styles at first sight: To the Romanesque style in the lower part follows an upper part in Gothic style, enriched with a series of archlets and mullioned windows, and with an amazing Last Judgement, featuring a statue of the Virgin keeping in her arms the Child, dating back to the first half of the 14^th century.

Finally, at the entrance of Ferrara cathedral you can’t but wonder the monstrous figures in the façade, as to remind worshippers that it is evil in the world.

San Petronio Basilica (Bologna) | Pic @foliamagazine.it

Place: Bologna
Year: 1390, completed in 1663
Architectural style: Italian Gothic style

Although highly incomplete, San Petronio is one of the largest churches in Europe. It’s the third religious building in Italy, the biggest after the Milan Cathedral and Florence Cathedral. Despite what most people wrongly think, it’s not the cathedral of the city, which is actually the Church of San Pietro.

Standing in front of the well-known Piazza Maggiore, its dimensions are noteworthy: 60mt width and 51mt height. The building is divided into two horizontal sections: the lower part features a sumptuous marble coating, designed by Antonio di Vincenzo at the end of the 14^th century, whereas the upper “bare” part is a clay-brick wall waiting to be further covered.

Today, the façade is one of Bologna symbols and no one would ever dare to carry out any sort of intervention. For centuries, though, at least until 1933, the completion of the basilica became a bone of contention. From the 16^th century, these disputes led to several projects, some of which were designed by great artists, at the likes of Baldassare Peruzzi, Giulio Romano, and Andrea Palladio.

Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe (Ravenna) | Pic @avrvm.it

Place: Ravenna
Year: 6th century
Architectural style: early Christian and Byzantine

Described by some as the greatest example of early Christian basilica in the world, the Church of Sant’Apollinare in Classe raises south of Ravenna, in a burial area, 8 km from the historical centre.

It is famous worldwide for the mosaic decorations of the apsis, to the extent that it became a World Heritage Site. The outer architectural aspect is plain and simple, imitating the classical basilica structure, but differentiating itself for the original 11^th-century bell tower that is typical of the Ravenna area.

It was entirely rebuilt with exposed bricks, the so-called ‘giulianei’, whose name stems from banker Giuliano Argentario, the construction financier. The façade was partially renovated, as other parts of the church, and it is preceded by a large narthex, which was bombed during the Second World War. Today, it features marbles and inscriptions.