Chiesa di Santa Maria della Piazza

Santa Maria della Piazza is a Romanesque church near Ancona's old harbour, built above the remains of an early Christian basilica dedicated to Santo Stefano. Its façade, completed in the early thirteenth century, and the archaeological layers beneath the floor preserve successive periods of the city's religious history.

Why it matters

The church is both a major Romanesque monument and an archaeological record of early Christianity in Ancona. Beneath it are remains of the basilica of Santo Stefano, including a clergy seating arrangement, a recess for relics and two layers of mosaic pavement. The medieval church, dedicated to the Virgin, took shape between the eleventh and twelfth centuries and received its definitive Romanesque form in the early thirteenth.

What to notice

An inscription on the main portal's lintel records the year 1210 and the master who completed the building's definitive form, Magister Filippo. Blind arcades decorate the façade above older Conero-stone masonry, and an Annunciation group stands at the centre. The portal is carved with vines, grapes and other symbols around its columns. Inside, the three-naved hall rests on stone pillars with geometric capitals. Below the floor, the early Christian basilica preserves the semicircle of clergy seating around the bishop's chair, a relic recess before the altar and two superimposed mosaic pavements. The later side apse contains early frescoes overpainted in successive periods.

Context and history

Municipal archaeological accounts identify Roman-era granaries beneath the earliest worship space, followed by the basilica of Santo Stefano and the medieval church. The city's interpretation associates Christian worship at the site with the second to fourth centuries. The church was also used for civic functions: public justice was administered here and the podestà swore his oath. In 1223, the apsidal area was rearranged with three bays forming a transept-like block with cross vaults. A municipal hypothesis suggests that a second apse may once have held relics of San Ciriaco before they were moved to the church on Guasco hill. The bell tower, close to the hillside fortifications, may have had a military function.