Chiesa Parrocchiale Santa Maria

The Parish Church of Santa Maria is the principal church of Villetta Barrea. It succeeded an older church of Santa Maria Assunta, which was demolished after the 1915 Marsica earthquake, and preserves furnishings and records from the earlier building.

Why it matters

The church connects the village's religious life with its recovery from the 1915 earthquake. Some furnishings and documents survived the demolition of the older parish church and now help tell the story of how the community rebuilt its devotional life.

What to notice

The church's history can be read alongside the collection in Villetta Barrea's restored circular tower. The museum there preserves nineteenth-century vestments and altar linens, furnishings from the old church, and documents dating from before the earthquake and from the construction of its successor.

Context and history

The old parish church of Santa Maria Assunta was irreparably damaged by the earthquake of 13 January 1915 and later demolished. A new parish church carried forward the dedication and the community's religious traditions. The museum in the village tower, inaugurated in 2011, preserves objects and documents associated with the earlier church and its reconstruction.