Description of the attraction
The Temple of Madonna del Arco is located in the town of Santa Anastasia in the Italian region of Campania. Once on this place, next to the ancient Roman arch, there was an ark dedicated to the Virgin Mary. And in the 15-16th centuries, two miraculous events took place here, which made Santa Anastasia a famous pilgrimage site.
The temple of Madonna del Arco is built in the form of a Latin cross and decorated with baroque elements. In the center of the transept there is a small sanctuary, which houses the very old ark with marble inlay. A baroque altar decorated with precious stones serves for the worship of the Virgin Mary. The church also houses an amazingly beautiful 17th century wooden crucifix and two canvases by Luca Giordano. To the right of the choirs is the Rosary Chapel, remarkable for its decorations. The cloister of the temple consists of columns that frame a garden with a well in the center.
Throughout the year, pilgrims from all over Italy and other regions of Europe come to Santa Anastasia, but it is especially crowded here during the annual religious festival I Fujenti, which dates back to the 16th century and is dedicated to the first miracle that happened here - the bleeding of the icon of the Virgin Mary … Then one of the bowlers, angry at the loss, in a rage hit the icon of the Madonna, and she began to bleed. The man began to run and jump non-stop and was subsequently hanged for his blasphemous act. Today, participants in the procession, Fujenti, dressed in white and barefoot, frantically run through the streets of the city, trying to atone for the player's sin. At the end of the procession, various offerings are made to the Madonna, of which several thousand have accumulated in the temple over the past centuries - this is probably one of the richest collections in the Christian world.
In addition to the Madonna del Arco in the town of Santa Anastasia, you can also see the Villa Tortora Bride of the 18th century, which today houses the Italian branch of the Red Cross, the Church of Santa Maria la Nova from the 16th century with an interesting bell tower, the Monastery of Sant Antonio, Palazzo Nicola Amore, Palazzo Marra and Palazzo Siano with a pipern portal.
