Chiesa di San Francesco

The Church of San Francesco in Acqui Terme preserves a Franciscan history dating to 1244. Its older Gothic structure, fifteenth-century bell tower and cloisters stand behind a nineteenth-century façade, while the interior contains paintings by regional artists.

Why it matters

The church is one of Acqui Terme's most historically layered religious buildings. Franciscan settlement and successive rebuilding shaped the structure, while works by Guglielmo Caccia, known as Il Moncalvo, and Raffaele Soleri contribute to its artistic significance.

What to notice

The nineteenth-century façade contrasts with the older brick tower and apse. Inside, the church has a broad central hall flanked by two side aisles. Works include Moncalvo's Immacolata Concezione, Soleri's Adorazione dei Magi and a panel attributed to Pietro Beccaria depicting the Madonna and Child with Saints Francis and Anthony of Padua. Two fifteenth-century cloisters survive in the former convent complex.

Context and history

The Franciscans arrived in 1244 and received the earlier church of San Giovanni, possibly on a paleo-Christian site. After the mid-fifteenth century, they rebuilt the church, retaining the apse and bell tower. Military occupations and the Napoleonic suppressions disrupted the convent, and the complex was later used as an agricultural warehouse. The church was remodelled with a new façade between 1835 and 1854. Later decoration included a carved wooden door by Giulio Monteverde and a barrel-vaulted interior frescoed by Pietro Ivaldi, known as Il Muto.