The small rural parish church was originally built in the 13th century, rebuilt in the 18th century, and later further modified. Between 1865 and 1870, Pietro Alessio Chini also worked on it, frescoing the image of the titular Saint and the four Evangelists. Today, no trace remains of these paintings, but the church preserves other works by the Chinis, from two successive generations.
Inside, a Baptismal Font made of ceramic with metallic luster decoration in relief appears to come from the production of the San Lorenzo Furnaces for the Berzieri Thermal Baths in Salsomaggiore (1920–1923), where the same piece can be found repurposed as a flower pot. The furnishings for this complex were designed by architect Ugo Giusti, in close collaboration with Galileo Chini, the artistic director of the Furnaces until 1925. It is possible that the font was placed in the church as early as the 1920s, although it was common for the Furnaces to continue producing models even many years after their initial creation, adapting them to new contexts.
Also inside the church, at the right side altar, there is an image of the Madonna in plaster, framed by a polychrome ceramic panel with geometric motifs, also produced by the Furnaces. Outside, a commemorative monument for the parishioners who fell in World War I is adorned with a relief in Grès sculpted by Petroni, and numerous tiles bearing the names of the fallen soldiers, along with geometric decorative patterns from the Furnaces’ repertoire. The monument, inaugurated in 1923, makes use of materials from the Furnaces, and the design is likely the work of Chino Chini, who had been involved in other local war memorials (such as those in Luco di Mugello, Cavallina, San Cresci in Valcava, and St. Ansano in Monte Aceraia), most of which were later destroyed.
Scheda di Vera Silvani, foto di Marta Magherini
© Il Filo – Idee e Notizie dal Mugello
Progetto Itinerario Liberty Mugello – Unione montana dei Comuni del Mugello
