Sant' Eufemia (12th century)


Earlier Church(es)

A church on this site and an adjacent Benedictine nunnery are first documented in ca. 980 when the abbess, Gunderada discovered the relics of St John of Spoleto near San Pietro and translated them to this church. She also commissioned a life of St John from “Giovanni Cassinese” and it was in this document that the church was documented.   The church was dedicated as SS Giovanni e Eufemia from this point until ca. 1446 (see below).

It is not clear whether Gunderada founded the church on the site of an earlier one.  According to tradition, Duke Theodelap of Spoleto (ca. 602-50) established the palatine chapel on this site.  Two pieces of circumstantial evidence support this assertion:

  • The dedication to St Euphemia, who was one of the most popular virgin martyrs of the Eastern church, could have been inspired by the presence in Spoleto of Syrian monks from the 6th century.
  • The capital (6th century) of the 3rd column on the right of the matrons' gallery of the present church may have come from an earlier church on the site.

An inscription (14th century) in the old Chancellery [where is that ??] transcribes a diplma (1017) in which the Emperor Henry II ceded the church to (the otherwise unknown) Conte Acodo at the behest of Archbishop Heribert of Cologne.  The nunnery had presumably closed by this time.  The fact that the complex was in the gift of the Emperor adds weight to the theory that this was indeed the site of the old ducal palace.

The complex seems subsequently to have passed into the hands of the bishops of Spoleto.  The nunnery was adapted to form the new Palazzo Vescovile at some time between 1173 and 1231. 

Present Church

The present church, which stands in the courtyard of Palazzo vescovile, is unusually tall and has the only matrons’ gallery in Umbria.  It is reminiscent of San Lorenzo, Verona, which was rebuilt in 1117, a fact that suggests that it was also rebuilt in the early 12th century.  The reasons for the rebuilding and for the apparent link with the church in Verona are not known.  

A fresco in the old Chancellery [where is that ??] shows its facade in the time of Bishop Galardo (ca. 1374-83), when it was decorated with frescoes of SS John and Euphemia.



In ca. 1446, Marco Condulmer (the brother of Pope Eugenius IV, who appointed him as administrator of the diocese) changed the dedication of the church to Santa Lucia.   (The relics of St Lucy were in his native Venice, and he might have transferred some of them to Sant’ Eufemia).

From the 16th century, the church was divided into two storeys:

  • the lower one remained open for worship; while

  • the upper one was incorporated into Palazzo Vescovile.

The church was restored in 1907-54.

Exterior

The façade (illustrated above), which was restored in the last century, retains its central bifore window. 

The lovely apse and apsidal chapels are visible from Via dell' Arringo (see Walk I).

Interior


A corridor in Palazzo Vescovile, which is reached from the Museo Diocesano, leads to the matrons' gallery, which runs along the upper part of the side aisles and counter-facade.

Many of the columns and their capitals seem to have come from earlier buildings:

  • The capital (6th century) of the 3rd column on the right of the matrons' gallery might have come from the first church on this site. 

  • The 4th column on the right in the nave has been replaced by a pilaster (9th century) that is finely carved on three sides.

Altar frontal (13th century)

The original high altar of Sant' Eufemia was destroyed during the recent restoration.
The marble frontal that was  used in the altar that replaced it is recognisable as that from the high altar of the Duomo, which Bishop Maffeo Barberini described in his pastoral visit of 1610.  It probably remained in its original location until 1792, the date at which the present high altar of the Duomo was installed.

The frontal has reliefs in tondi of the Agnus Dei and the symbols of the Evangelists.

God the Father with angels (early 14th century)

This fresco, which is the only one to survive in the apse, was restored in the 16th century.




St Lucy (1455)

This fresco, which is dated by a now-illegible inscription, is on the 4th column on the right.

Virgin Martyr (15th century)

This fresco, which is attributed to Bartolomeo da Miranda, is on the 5th column on the right.

Dormition of the Virgin (16th century?)

The present altarpiece behind the high altar is of unknown provenance. 

(The altarpiece (1450) that Marco Condulmer commissioned for the original high altar is now in the Museo Diocesano).




Inscribed Cippus (4th century AD)

This cippus, which has been adapted to serve as an altar, is now above the steps in the nave.  The inscription is the only surviving part of the original [CIL XI 4966], which came from San Lorenzo, Terzo la Pieve.

The inscription recorded that Bishop Spes (ca. 380-410) and his daughter Calvenzia (a virgin, consecrated to God)  had discovered the relics of St Vitalis.  Bishop Spes had translated them to the church of San Lorenzo and interred them under an altar which he had dedicated to the saint. 

Bishop Paolo Sanvitale translated the relics and the inscription to the Duomo in 1597.  The inscription was broken, probably during its translation.  The complete text is known from a transcription contained in a letter written by Bishop Sanvitale.

(A relic of the tibia of St Vitalis, which is contained in a reliquary (1597) commissioned by Bishop Sanvitale, is now in the Cappella delle Reliquie, Duomo).

Return to in Palazzo Vescovile. 

Return to Walk I.