Highlights
Parish church, rebuilt in 1700 in the main square of Valfenera.
The parish church of Valfenera, originally dedicated to St. Peter, was built at the end of the 12th century, in the center of the village; later, ffor security and defense reasons, the town center was moved and so the church was rebuilt, located next to the castle.
In the process of reconstruction and expansion of the sacred building, at the beginning of 1500, the parish church was dedicated to the Ss. Bartholomew and Peter.
The new structure of the church had five windows and two doors, a high altar and two lateral ones: one dedicated to the Holy Trinity, the other in St. Anthony.
The church, however, due to enemy offenses against the fortified center of Valfenera, suffered extensive damage that was only partially repaired to allow the celebration of mass.
In fact, however, the conditions of the building were very precarious and for the population, its position was no longer comfortable.
Thus, in 1702, by order of Bishop Monsignor Carlo Giuseppe Morozzo, it was decided to build a new parish church in the main square of the town where the bell tower and the town hall already existed.
The beginning of the work was accompanied by various controversies and negotiations, in fact, only in 1718, with an agreementthat provided for the transfer by Countess Anna Felicita Nomis of Vernone of the patronage of her church of St. John, was elevated finally, the current parish church.
New church embellishment works were put in place: the altar was renovated, the presbytery was enlarged, the balustrade of precious marble was covered.
From that time on, a golden period began for the religious life of the country. Around 1882, about half a century after the last restoration, the parish church was enlarged by a span, to contain the increased population.
With the lengthening of the church a general restoration of the interior was required. These works of decoration, plastering, painting, the arrangement of the altars and the construction of the pulpit, tribune and organ began in 1884 and lasted for several years.
The decoration was entrusted to G.B. Lauro, while the painting work was done by Paolo Emilio Morgari, one of the best-known artists of the time.
The vault of the church was embellished with the painting of the Immaculate Conception and the Martyrdom of St. Bartholomew, two precious frescoes, which constitute one of the most interesting elements of the church.
Around these central paintings stand out in the vault lunettes the figures of the patron saints of Valferena: St. Joseph, St. Andrew, St. Sebastian, St. Roch, St. Michael and St. Clement.
The vault of the chancel depicts the triumph of the Eucharist, while the chancel wall depicts the baptism of Jesus.
On the sides of the high altar, on the other hand, figures of the four Evangelists can be seen.
In later times the side altars of the Sacred Heart, the Rosary and St. Joseph were rebuilt in marble, and two new altars were made in the chapels resulting from the lengthening of the church, one dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows and the other to St. Anthony of Padua.
Insights
Comune di Valfenera
https://www.comune.valfenera.at.it
- Chiesa parrocchiale di San Bartolomeo e San Giovanni
https://www.comune.valfenera.at.it/it/page/chiesa-parrocchiale-di-san-bartolomeo-e-san-giovann - Testimonianze d'arte
https://www.comune.valfenera.at.it/it/page/testimonianze-d-arte-36a03cdd-ddc1-49ab-bb03-21cd522e681a
BeWeb - Beni Ecclesiastici in WEB
https://beweb.chiesacattolica.it/
- Chiesa dei Santi Bartolomeo e Giovanni
https://www.beweb.chiesacattolica.it/houses/house/22367/Valfenera+%28AT%29+%7C+Chiesa+dei+Santi+Bartolomeo+e+Giovanni
VENITE e VEDRETE (Parrocchie di Valfenera, Pralormo, Cellarengo e Villata)
https://www.venitevedrete.it/
- CHIESA DI SAN BARTOLOMEO E SAN GIOVANNI BATTISTA
https://www.venitevedrete.it/san-bartolomeo.html
GAL BMA - Gruppo di Azione Locale del Basso Monferrato Astigiano
https://www.monferratoastigiano.it/
- Comune di Valfenera (AT)
https://www.monferratoastigiano.it/comune-di-valfenera-at/
