Chiesa del Cristo

The Church of the Cristo in Reggio Emilia grew around a Crucifix fresco associated with the plague of 1630–1631. Giovan Battista Cattani, known as Cavallari, designed the late-Baroque church, whose façade is marked by three marble statues by Angelo Finali. The building now serves as a Romanian Orthodox church.

Why it matters

The fresco of the Crucified Christ with the sorrowing Virgin became an object of devotion during the plague and inspired the construction of a church to house it. Work began in 1761, and the church opened for worship in 1763; the building was completed later in the eighteenth century. After the Napoleonic suppression of the confraternities, it closed and reopened in 1814.

What to notice

The façade centres on a portal beneath a shaped window and balustrade. Three marble statues by Angelo Finali represent Faith, Hope and Charity. A restoration completed in 2018 recovered the building's eighteenth-century colours. Inside, a single nave retains stucco decoration; the main altar comes from the Tondelli family workshop. In the apse, the anonymous Reggio artist's Crucifixion fresco preserves the image around which the church developed.

Context and history

The church's changing use reflects Reggio Emilia's religious history. Its origins lie in an oratory associated with the plague-era Crucifix; the later church was built to shelter the image. Following the 1814 reopening, it continued in religious use and now serves the Romanian Orthodox community.