BASILICA DI SANT'ANGELO IN FORMIS

Perched on Mount Tifata, the Basilica of Sant'Angelo in Formis conceals a cycle of frescoes from the 11th and 12th centuries that make its visit a must. It was founded at the end of the 6th century and is attributed to the Lombards, who had a particular cult to the Archangel Saint Michael. It was built on the foundations of a Roman temple dedicated to Diana (protective goddess of woods and hunting): excavations carried out in 1877 revealed that the church occupied roughly the perimeter of the ancient building. When it was granted to the Benedictines of the Abbey of Mont-Cassin, Abbot Desiderius, the future Pope Victor III, had it rebuilt (1072-1087) and commissioned the cycle of frescoes that adorned the walls. This medieval pictorial ensemble is one of the most important in southern Italy and an exceptional testimony to the painting of that period, which was still strongly influenced by Byzantine influences. The abbot had himself represented in the central apse, offering Christ the model of the basilica: he can be recognised by his square halo, an iconographic motif that makes it possible to distinguish the figures painted during his lifetime. The ensemble illustrates episodes from the Old Testament in the side aisles (very damaged) and scenes from the New Testament in the central nave. A Last Judgement adorns the counterfaçade. Non-homogeneous paving mainly in cosmatesque mosaic (12th century). Note, finally, the pretty zoomorphic frieze decorating the campanile.