Tempio di Sant'Emidio alle Grotte

The Temple of Sant'Emidio alle Grotte stands beside the caves on Ascoli Piceno's outskirts where, according to local tradition, the city's patron saint was buried. His remains were later translated to the crypt of the cathedral.

Why it matters

The site links the cult of Sant'Emidio with the extra-mural cemetery where his remains were believed to have rested before their transfer to the cathedral crypt in the eleventh century. The Baroque temple is set against a rocky hillside, recalling the site's earlier use as a burial place.

What to notice

The temple's travertine façade rises directly against the rock. Within the sanctuary, natural grottoes were adapted as chapels. The shrine's architecture brings together the constructed Baroque temple and the older burial site.

Context and history

The hillside was used as a Christian burial ground by at least the third century. Tradition associates the cemetery with Sant'Emidio and his companions, whose relics were transferred to the cathedral crypt in the eleventh century. The present temple was built in the early eighteenth century as a votive offering after the 1703 earthquakes. Its first stone was blessed in 1717, and the building was consecrated in 1720; work continued into about 1721. Giuseppe Giosafatti designed the temple.