San Giovanni Decollato

(re-modeled in ca. 1832)



This original church here, which was also known as San Giovanni de Platea, belonged to the Commune and was probably built soon after the sack of Trevi in 1214. 

An adjacent hospice was documented in 1291 and administered by the Compagnia della Misercordia from at least 1375.  Remains of this complex can be seen in the street along the right of the church.

The Commune jealously guarded its rights over the church:

  • In 1372, the Commune resisted an attempt by Pope Gregory XI to give it to the Augustinians, forbidding the friars to set foot in the town and forbidding the citizens to sell them any property.
  • In 1375, the Commune prevented an episcopal visit by the Bishop of Spoleto to the church and adjacent hospice.
  • In 1501, the Commune united it with its other church, Madonna delle Lacrime, which was administered by a community of Lateran Canons.
  • In 1570, the Commune ceded the church to the Compagnia della Misercordia, which took over an adjacent house in 1626 and adapted it as an oratory.
  • In ca. 1600, the Commune resisted an attempt by Cardinal Erminio Valenti to give the complex to the Barnabites. 

The hospital remained in use until the Napoleonic period, when it was transferred to the suppressed convent of San Domenico (since demolished) in what is now Piazza Garibaldi (see the walk around Trevi).  Its building was used for a period as a prison. 

The façade and the interior of the church were re-modeled the in the neo-Classical style in the 19th century, perhaps inspired by Giuseppe Valadier's stay in Trevi in 1832.

Interior


High Altar

The high altar is covered by a baldachino, with the Valenti arms at the base on the left.  The altarpiece (early 17th century) depicts the beheading of St John the Baptist.




Side Altars

The church has two side altars:

  • The altar on the left belonged to the Università dei Muratori (bricklayers' guild).  The inscription (1612) at the base marks the burial of members, described as "Lombardi , muratori e scalpellini" (artisans from Lombardy, bricklayers and stone masons).  The wooden Crucifix (late 16th century), in which the figure of Christ has movable arms, was used in Passion plays.

  • The altar on the right, which was decorated in stucco in 1682 by the Abbati family, has a wooden statue (early 17th century) of the Risen Christ.

Monument to Alessandro Valenti (ca. 1570)

The main monument, with a depiction of the deceased in high relief and an inscription, is on the left wall. 

A longer inscription on the right wall outlines his career, including the facts that:

  • he was the rector of the Compagnia della Misercordia (to whom he made a major bequest in his will); and
  • Pope Julius III gave him the Villa di Rivosecco.  (This carried with it the title of Conti di Rivosecco, an honour that Pope Pius V confirmed and made hereditary in 1566).

Return to the walk around Trevi.