{"id":310024,"date":"2024-08-09T21:53:42","date_gmt":"2024-08-09T19:53:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/what-to-see\/avigliana-church-of-santa-maria-maggiore-in-borgo-vecchio-2\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T15:05:39","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T13:05:39","slug":"avigliana-church-of-santa-maria-maggiore-in-borgo-vecchio","status":"publish","type":"what-to-see","link":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/what-to-see\/avigliana-church-of-santa-maria-maggiore-in-borgo-vecchio\/","title":{"rendered":"Church of Santa Maria Maggiore"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, situated in the charming <strong>Borgo Vecchio of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/village\/avigliana\/\">Avigliana<\/a><\/strong>, on the slopes leading up to the castle, dates back to the Middle Ages. It is documented as early as the 12th century as a dependency of the Provostship of San Lorenzo d\u2019Oulx, although its exact origins remain partly shrouded in mystery.<\/p>\n<p>Over the centuries, the building has undergone numerous renovations that have profoundly altered its original appearance. Today it presents a predominantly Baroque fa\u00e7ade, whilst only the base of the bell tower remains of the ancient Romanesque structure. The bell tower was rebuilt in the Gothic style in the 15th century, embellished with decorations made from glazed ceramic basins, a decorative element of great charm.<\/p>\n<p>The interior, which underwent significant alterations from the 15th century onwards, consists of a single nave with side chapels added in the 19th century, and features a polygonal chancel and choir. Among the most significant furnishings is the 18th-century pulpit from the former convent of Sant\u2019Agostino, alongside Baroque paintings depicting scenes from the Old Testament and the Annunciation. Of more recent date is the 1926 painting by Giovanni Paolo Crida, dedicated to Blessed Umberto of Savoy.<\/p>\n<p>The church served as a parish church until 1974, when worship was transferred to the new church of Santa Maria Maggiore in the lower village. Today, the building has taken on a new cultural role: it houses the Vita e Pace Cultural Centre, which promotes restoration work and archaeological research, and hosts the permanent collection of works by the artist Elsa Veglio Turino. Among these, sculptures of great expressive intensity stand out, such as the Crucifixion and the Emptied Christ.<\/p>\n<p>A place that combines history, art and spirituality, capable of recounting centuries of transformation and community life in the ancient heart of Avigliana.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discover the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Avigliana, a medieval building converted in the Baroque style, now a cultural centre celebrating art and history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":237021,"template":"","village-conntection":[50423],"what-to-see-region-and-provinces":[76181,76187],"what-to-see-category":[30159],"class_list":["post-310024","what-to-see","type-what-to-see","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","village-conntection-avigliana-it","what-to-see-region-and-provinces-piedmont","what-to-see-region-and-provinces-turin","what-to-see-category-place-of-cult"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/what-to-see\/310024","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\/310024\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/237021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=310024"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"village-conntection","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/village-conntection?post=310024"},{"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=310024"},{"taxonomy":"what-to-see-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.e-borghi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/what-to-see-category?post=310024"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}