Description
The church of San Giorgio is the oldest in Campobasso, and some say in the whole province: a Romanesque stone church in the upper part of the city, below Castello Monforte, dedicated to the patron saint.
It probably dates from the 10th century and is said to stand on the site of a pagan temple, perhaps dedicated to Hercules. The centuries have changed its shape, but its ancient look remains intact.
The gabled facade faces the medieval town and already hints at the three aisles inside. The central part is made of squared stone blocks; the wings, added later, of irregular stones. Two of the facade's pillars have capitals with stylized leaves and animal heads.
Above the portal, the lunette shows the lamb with the cross, wrapped in densely interwoven leaves and vine shoots. Higher up opens a small funnel-shaped rose window, unusual for a Romanesque church.
It is worth walking around the church. Pieces of older Romanesque buildings are set into the outer walls: a pelican on the right side and, at the back, a sun and a curious donkey's head with its bridle.
On the right side rises the square bell tower, with double and single lancet windows. On the left side, reached from the presbytery, is the 14th-century chapel of San Gregorio: under the dome, frescoes of Saint Augustine and other saints, each with their name written beside them.
Next to the facade, a low wall with a small barred window is all that remains of the cemetery that for centuries received the parish's dead. Below the window, a stone slab is split in half by a relief of a human head.
From the churchyard a wide view opens over the whole city, from the historic center to the modern neighborhoods scattered across the hills. Together with the nearby church of San Bartolomeo and Torre Terzano, San Giorgio draws the skyline of the hilltop.
It probably dates from the 10th century and is said to stand on the site of a pagan temple, perhaps dedicated to Hercules. The centuries have changed its shape, but its ancient look remains intact.
The gabled facade faces the medieval town and already hints at the three aisles inside. The central part is made of squared stone blocks; the wings, added later, of irregular stones. Two of the facade's pillars have capitals with stylized leaves and animal heads.
Above the portal, the lunette shows the lamb with the cross, wrapped in densely interwoven leaves and vine shoots. Higher up opens a small funnel-shaped rose window, unusual for a Romanesque church.
It is worth walking around the church. Pieces of older Romanesque buildings are set into the outer walls: a pelican on the right side and, at the back, a sun and a curious donkey's head with its bridle.
On the right side rises the square bell tower, with double and single lancet windows. On the left side, reached from the presbytery, is the 14th-century chapel of San Gregorio: under the dome, frescoes of Saint Augustine and other saints, each with their name written beside them.
Next to the facade, a low wall with a small barred window is all that remains of the cemetery that for centuries received the parish's dead. Below the window, a stone slab is split in half by a relief of a human head.
From the churchyard a wide view opens over the whole city, from the historic center to the modern neighborhoods scattered across the hills. Together with the nearby church of San Bartolomeo and Torre Terzano, San Giorgio draws the skyline of the hilltop.