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Unknown Era · Archaeological Site43.0748°N, 12.6058°E

Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

Built over the tomb of the saint who preached poverty, and covered in some of the most important paintings in Western art. Francis died in 1226; within two years his basilica was rising on an Umbrian hill, two churches stacked one on the other. The walls carry frescoes by Cimabue and, most famously, a cycle of the life of St Francis long linked to the young Giotto, images that helped drag painting toward realism. A 1997 earthquake brought down part of the vault; the frescoes were painstakingly pieced back together from fragments.

Description via source. Coordinates and heritage data from the Atika atlas.

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