Porziuncola – Santa Maria degli Angeli (Perugia)
<<For here he began humbly;
here he progressed virtuously;
here he ended happily .>>
Major Legend of Saint Bonaventure
A first chapel dedicated to the Holy Virgin of Angels was probably still existing in the fourth century until Benedictin monks transformed it into the current small church during the nineth century. The name “Porziuncola” stands for “piccola parte” (“small portion”), referring to the small part of ground initially occupied by it.
The church has been abandoned for a long time, until Saint Francis after a vision decided to restore it: this marked the moment in which he understood the real meaning of his mission, based on poorty, minority and evangelization. Here, Saint Francis embraced the first followers and established the Order of Friars Minor, obtaining the place where to build his friars’ community. In the area of Porziuncola, in 1211, Santa Chiara got the monastic habit by Saint Francis and, soon afterwards, she founded the Order of the Poor Clares. Here, in 1216 “the poor man of Assisi” asked Jesus and Marie for bringing everybody to Paradise with the concession of the total Forgiveness.
On the Porziuncola’s façade, a fresco representing St Francis asking for forgiveness was painted by Friedrich Overbeck in 1829. On the backside, there’s a Crucifixion realized by Perugino in 1486. The Alterpiece (1393) with the Announciation and the Stories of Forgiveness, placed inside the chapel, is attributed to Ilario da Viterbo.
Papal Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli
Santa Maria degli Angeli (Perugia)
<<Holy Queen,
Holy Mother of God, Mary,
you are Virgin made Church.
Ave, his palace,
ave, his tabernacle,
ave, his home.>>
Greeting to the Blessed Virgin Mary of Saint Francis
By the will of Pope Saint Pio V, between 1569 e 1679 the architect Galeazzo Alessi was entrusted to design the project for the Basilica, to be dedicated to the Holy Virgin of Angels, in order to incorporate and protect the Porziuncola and the Transitus chapel. Alessi’s project was characterized by structural simplicity: the ceiling was left specifically without any decoration, in order to point out that the real protagonist of the location was the Porziuncola.
The current façade, built in 1930, was realized to give solidity to the entire building; on top, there’s a majestic gilded bronze sculpture of the Virgin, about 8 meters high.
