Chiesa dei Celestini

The Church of the Celestini brings together Bologna's monastic, civic and artistic history. Founded for the Celestine monks who settled here in 1368, it stands beside the former convent, now home to the State Archives.

Why it matters

The Celestine order, founded by Pietro da Morrone—later Pope Celestine V—came to Bologna at the invitation of Antonio Galluzzi, who endowed the monks with a monastery and a church dedicated to San Giovanni Battista. The church became a parish in 1482, and the adjoining square, Piazza de' Celestini, preserves the order's name. Following the suppression of the monastery in 1797, the convent passed through several civic and administrative uses, while the church continued as a parish and later as a subsidiary church.

What to notice

The church's 1765 façade was designed by Francesco Tadolini as part of an eighteenth-century rebuilding of the complex. Inside, the main altarpiece by Marc'Antonio Franceschini depicts the Madonna and Child with Saints John the Baptist, Luke and Pier Celestino; Giuseppe Mazza supplied its sculptural ornament. The vault shows the soul of Saint Peter Celestine carried heavenward by angels, painted by Giovanni Antonio Burrini with perspectival framing by Enrico Haffner. Other works include Lucio Massari's Christ appearing to Mary Magdalene as a gardener and an image of Saint Anne, Saint Joachim and the young Virgin by Anna Maria Crescimbeni.

Context and history

The church was rebuilt between 1535 and 1554; the convent followed in 1560–61, and the bell tower was added in 1580. Carlo Francesco Dotti and Francesco Tadolini later reshaped the complex in the eighteenth century. After the Napoleonic suppression, the former convent served a succession of civic and administrative functions, including as the School of Application for Engineers. The State Archives of Bologna moved into the building on 1 January 1940. The church was a parish until 1806, became subsidiary to Santissimo Salvatore, and regained parish status in 1824, which it retained until 1987.