Description of the attraction
The Basilica of Santo Stefano, also known as the "Seven Churches" (Sette Chiese), is a complex of religious buildings located in the square of the same name in Bologna. According to legend, back in the 5th century, the city bishop Petronius ordered the erection of a Christian complex on the site of the temple of the goddess Isis, which was to repeat the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. Today this basilica can be confidently called one of the best-preserved reproductions of Jerusalem in Europe.
It is difficult to establish the exact date of the construction of Santo Stefano, but experts agree that the complex dates back to the early Middle Ages. Thus, the Church of St. John the Baptist dates back to the VIII century, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher - to the V century. The portico, built in the 13th century and known as the Pilate's Court, serves as a link between the buildings of the complex and the Church of the Holy Trinity, also erected in the 13th century. However, what tourists see today is, unfortunately, not the original view of the complex, but the result of numerous restorations carried out in the late 19th - early 20th centuries.
The central church of the complex is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. It is an octagonal structure with 12 columns supporting the dome. 7 columns are made of marble, 5 are made of bricks. In the center of the temple stands the Aedikole of St. Petronius, but the relics of the saint are now kept not here, but in the cathedral named after him. Particularly revered places of the temple are the source, which tradition associates with the waters of the Jordan, and the column of black marble standing apart from all, symbolizing the one on which Christ was scourged. It is likely that both the source and the column were once part of the ancient Roman temple of Isis. In the 12th century, the vault and walls of the church were painted with frescoes, but today fragments of them can only be seen in the basilica museum, since they were removed in the 19th century.
The Church of the Crucifixion of the Lord, also part of the Santo Stefano complex, is also worth a visit. The temple was built in the 8th century. In the presbytery, where the main staircase leads, you can see the Crucifix made in the 14th century by the sculptor Simone dei Crochifissi, and frescoes from the 15th century. And in the crypt, during recent restoration work, a preserved 15th century fresco "Madonna della Neve" was discovered.
