Santuario della Madonna di Frasassi (Tempio del Valadier)

The Sanctuary of the Madonna di Frasassi, commonly called the Valadier Temple, stands at the entrance to the Frasassi Caves in the Gola di Frasassi. Its pale travertine, octagonal form and low dome rise beside the older hermitage of Santa Maria Infra Saxa, partly set into the rock.

Why it matters

The sanctuary brings neoclassical architecture into close dialogue with the gorge’s geology and its longer devotional history. The adjacent hermitage is documented from 1029 and was associated with a community of Benedictine nuns. The temple, commissioned by Cardinal Annibale della Genga before he became Pope Leo XII, dates to the early nineteenth century.

What to notice

The compact temple has eight sides and a lead-covered dome. Beside it, the simpler rooms and chapel of Santa Maria Infra Saxa are partly formed within the rock. The alabaster altar holds a copy of a marble Madonna and Child attributed to the school of Antonio Canova; the original is preserved in Genga’s Museo Arte Storia Territorio.

Context and history

The hermitage of Santa Maria Infra Saxa appears in documents in 1029 as an oratory connected with Benedictine nuns. Cardinal Annibale della Genga commissioned the temple in 1819, and it was inaugurated in 1828, during his pontificate as Leo XII. Giuseppe Valadier is traditionally credited with its design. Archaeological work in the surrounding area has brought to light bread ovens, grain pits, coins and human remains, evidence of earlier activity in the gorge.