Chiesa di San Bernardino

San Bernardino is one of Rimini's best-preserved eighteenth-century churches. Rebuilt in Baroque form by Giovan Francesco Buonamici after the 1672 earthquake, it is distinguished by a diamond-point brick façade and paintings by local and regional artists.

Why it matters

The church was built around 1670 within a convent complex and rebuilt after the earthquake. It was consecrated in 1761 by Cardinal Lodovico Valenti, bishop of Rimini; the tourism portal identifies it as Buonamici's final work. A plaque on the façade commemorates the bombing of 28 December 1943, which destroyed most of the convent while sparing the church.

What to notice

The façade's rustic diamond-point brickwork is a distinctive feature. Niches contain statues of Saint Bernardino and Blessed Giacomo della Marca, modelled by Carlo Sarti in 1765. Inside, the single-nave church has Baroque stucco and paintings including Giovanni Laurentini's San Bernardino da Siena (1600), Ercole Graziani's Santa Margherita da Cortona (1752) and three canvases by Donato Creti. A historic organ stands above the entrance.

Context and history

The church's history is linked to a convent of cloistered Clarisse. Its Baroque rebuilding and the surviving art reflect the religious and architectural life of eighteenth-century Rimini. The plaque recording the 1943 bombing preserves another layer of the complex's history.