{"id":308576,"date":"2024-08-09T20:11:06","date_gmt":"2024-08-09T18:11:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/what-to-see\/pietrapertosa-mother-church-of-san-giacomo-maggiore-2\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T13:46:43","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T11:46:43","slug":"pietrapertosa-mother-church-of-san-giacomo-maggiore","status":"publish","type":"what-to-see","link":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/what-to-see\/pietrapertosa-mother-church-of-san-giacomo-maggiore\/","title":{"rendered":"Mother Church of San Giacomo Maggiore"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Mother Church of San Giacomo Maggiore in Pietrapertosa<\/strong><\/a> is one of the most fascinating buildings in the village, not only for its religious significance but also for its unique history, which is closely linked to the village\u2019s medieval origins.<\/p>\n

Its roots probably date back to the Lombard period, when the building served a defensive purpose: a veritable fortress forming part of the settlement\u2019s defence system during the Lombard Principality of Salerno. It was only later, between the 11th and 12th centuries, with the arrival of the Normans and the influence of the ecclesiastical see of Acerenza, that the structure was transformed into a place of worship and dedicated to St James.<\/p>\n

Despite numerous alterations over the centuries, the complex still retains its original Romanesque character. It comprises the church, with an early Christian-derived basilica plan, a Romanesque bell tower built at a later date, and an evocative underground crypt. A fire between the 12th and 13th centuries caused serious damage to the building, leading to significant structural alterations: one of the side aisles was removed, the dome was lowered and a small apse was added beyond the chancel, whilst the bell tower was built in place of the demolished aisle.<\/p>\n

The interior houses a rich artistic heritage, featuring paintings and frescoes dating from the 17th and 18th centuries, including works attributed to P.A. Ferro and Giovanni De Gregorio, known as \u2018il Pietrafesa\u2019. Of particular interest is the small frescoed chapel situated behind the chancel, decorated with scenes from the Last Judgement and the life of Christ, which also houses an elegant 16th-century wooden choir.<\/p>\n

Restoration work carried out in the 20th century, particularly in 1940, consolidated the structure and brought to light important architectural features, such as Romanesque capitals and an ancient baptismal font, helping to further enhance the monument.<\/p>\n

Today, the Mother Church of San Giacomo Maggiore stands as an extraordinary testament to the historical layers of Pietrapertosa: from a Lombard fortification to a sacred building, it retains the charm of a place where architecture, art and history intertwine in a striking manner.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Discover the Mother Church of San Giacomo Maggiore in Pietrapertosa, an ancient fortification that has been converted into a place of worship, complete with a crypt and works of art.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":235621,"template":"","village-conntection":[50932],"what-to-see-region-and-provinces":[76403,76405],"what-to-see-category":[30159],"class_list":["post-308576","what-to-see","type-what-to-see","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","village-conntection-pietrapertosa-it","what-to-see-region-and-provinces-basilicata-en","what-to-see-region-and-provinces-potenza-en","what-to-see-category-place-of-cult"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/what-to-see\/308576","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/what-to-see"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/what-to-see"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/what-to-see\/308576\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/235621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=308576"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"village-conntection","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/village-conntection?post=308576"},{"taxonomy":"what-to-see-region-and-provinces","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/what-to-see-region-and-provinces?post=308576"},{"taxonomy":"what-to-see-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/what-to-see-category?post=308576"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}