Chiesa della Santissima Annunziata e convento francescano

Founded by the Observant Franciscans in 1449, the Church of the Santissima Annunziata and its convent stand just outside Levanto's medieval core. The complex preserves significant paintings, a frescoed refectory and a history marked by a dramatic collapse in 1613.

Why it matters

The Levanto-born friar Battista Tagliacarne founded the convent in 1449 along the old mule track into the hills; the adjoining church was completed by 1460. The complex connects the town with the religious and artistic culture of fifteenth-century Liguria, while its paintings and frescoes reflect donations from local families and Genoese contacts.

What to notice

Above the central portal is a fifteenth-century white Carrara marble bas-relief. Inside the three-aisled church, the panel of St George and the dragon is attributed to Pier Francesco Sacchi; taken to Paris during the Napoleonic occupation, it was later returned to Levanto. A Miracle of St Diego is attributed to Bernardo Strozzi, and Gian Battista Casoni painted the 1641 Last Supper at Emmaus. A Caravaggesque canvas portrays the founder, the blessed Battista Tagliacarne. The sixteenth-century refectory has a frescoed vault and four saints in tondi painted by Michele da Levanto. The first cloister dates to the founding campaign; a second was added around 1500. The loggiato was restored between 1980 and 1992.

Context and history

On a Sunday in 1613, the left nave collapsed during Mass, killing seventeen people. Rebuilding began in 1615, lengthening one bay and raising the ceiling. The complex underwent further restoration over the centuries, including the 1980–1992 campaign, which sought to recover the church's earlier form. The convent belonged to the Friars Minor Observant and later to the Friars Minor of the province. Its surviving works and architectural layers preserve the history of a Franciscan community established at the edge of Levanto.