Chiesa di San Tommaso

The church of San Tommaso in Turin combines medieval parish origins, Baroque interior elements and a nineteenth-century façade and plan shaped during the construction of Via Pietro Micca.

Why it matters

San Tommaso is among Turin's oldest documented parishes, mentioned in records from 1115. When urban changes threatened the church in the 1890s, architect Carlo Ceppi redesigned it around surviving older structures. The result brings together medieval, Baroque and nineteenth-century architecture in a single building.

What to notice

The semicircular façade on Via Pietro Micca has a marble-framed portal, elliptical windows and small Baroque-style spires. Inside, a central Greek-cross plan opens beneath a dome. The apse, transept and bell tower preserve elements of the earlier church. The walnut pulpit dates to 1724, and the main altar was remade in 1838 using marble from its seventeenth-century predecessor.

Context and history

The parish is documented by 1115. Franciscans took charge in the 1570s, and a new church was begun in 1584 under Duke Carlo Emanuele I and consecrated in 1621. A nearby powder-magazine explosion damaged it in 1698. In the 1890s, the route of Via Pietro Micca prompted a redesign by Carlo Ceppi; the nave was demolished and the church rebuilt around surviving parts, reopening in 1897. The parish was suppressed in 2013 and placed under the nearby cathedral.