Chiesa di San Lorenzo de' Arari

The Church of San Lorenzo de' Arari is a Romanesque building in Orvieto's historic centre. Its name recalls an ancient Etruscan altar incorporated into the church's high altar.

Why it matters

The church stands on a site associated with Etruscan ritual before the medieval building was raised. Its layered history is reflected in the combination of the ancient altar stone and the Romanesque structure above it.

What to notice

The façade is built of local tuff and has a simple gabled form with a central rose window. A fifteenth-century portal, framed in basalt and topped by a painted lunette, marks the entrance. Inside, a dark-stone ciborium shelters the ancient altar stone. Fresco fragments include an early-fourteenth-century cycle depicting the life of Saint Lawrence.

Context and history

Some accounts place the church's origins around the year 1000, while the visible building is also dated to the late thirteenth century. Its name derives from the Etruscan ara, or altar, incorporated into the Christian sanctuary. The medieval interior was once extensively frescoed, though only fragments remain.