Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi all'Immacolata

On a hill above the valley, Caltagirone’s church known as dell’Immacolata combines Franciscan tradition with Baroque rebuilding after the 1693 earthquake. It stands in the San Francesco quarter and is associated with the city’s devotion to the Immaculate Conception.

Why it matters

Tradition dates a church on this hill to 1236 and attributes the Gothic building to the friar Riccardo, a follower of Francis of Assisi. After the 1693 earthquake, it was rebuilt in Baroque form. Known as dell’Immacolata, the church remains an important focus of devotion to the Immaculate Conception in Caltagirone.

What to notice

The two-tier facade includes Marian symbols and the figure of the Immaculate Conception; the lunette above the portal bears the crossed arms of Christ and Francis. The dome was never completed. Inside are paintings attributed to the Vaccaro brothers and nineteenth-century canvases depicting Saint Jerome, Saint Anthony of Padua, Saint Francis, the Addolorata and the Crucifix. The adjoining convent now houses diocesan offices and other institutions.

Context and history

Tradition attributes the 1236 Gothic church to beato Riccardo, and traces of the medieval building are said to survive in the sacristy and a rib-vaulted chapel. The earthquake of 1693 left the complex in ruins. Reconstruction continued in Baroque forms through the eighteenth century; the present two-tier facade is associated with a 1727 commission to Catania architects Tommaso Amato and Francesco Battaglia. The dome remains incomplete. The adjoining convent once served as the diocesan seminary and now houses the bishop’s seat, the Pio XI library, diocesan offices and the Museo Diocesano.