Description of the attraction
San Sisto is a stone church in Pisa, built in the Pisano-Romanesque style and consecrated in 1133. It was in it that the most important notarial acts of the Pisa Commune were signed for several years. Saint Sixtus (San Sisto in Italian) was the ancient patron saint of the city; his feast was celebrated on August 6. However, on August 6, 1284, Pisa lost the naval battle at Meloria, losing 12 thousand of its citizens killed. Since then, the holiday has ceased to be celebrated.
The façade of the church is divided into three parts, which in turn are divided by pilasters, and decorated with vaulted windows and arches at the top. Inside, San Sisto consists of a central nave and two side chapels, separated from each other by columns with antique capitals. The roof of the church is gable. It contains an Arab tombstone of Emir Al Murtad, brought to Pisa after the conquest of the Balearic Islands in 1115, a replica of a 14th-century Madonna and Child statue and a ship's wheel of a Pisa galley from the 14th-15th centuries. The main altar in colored marble was made by Giuseppe Vacca in 1730. It is decorated with images of cherubs and allegorical images of Faith and Mercy. Also noteworthy are copies of the flags of the historic quarters of the Pisa Republic. Since 1926, next to the Church of San Sisto, there has been a monument to Giovanni Pisano, the great Italian sculptor and architect. However, in January 1945 it was destroyed by an explosion.
Since 1958, on the initiative of the Friends of Pisa Association, it was decided to make August 6 a day of remembrance for all the townspeople who died in all wars. Since then, on this day, a solemn ceremony of remembrance has been held in the Church of San Sisto, and a laurel wreath is placed on the grave, which reminds of the dead. At the end of the Mass, a message from the head of state is read out.
