Chapel VI - Saint Francis sends the first disciples to preach

This chapel stands along the eastern sequence of the complex, a careful composition of stone and light. A square atrium leads into the main hall, rectangular and apse-ended, with a thirteen-bay portico wrapping three sides. The central volume rises above the portico’s groin vaults, its own roof a shallow pavilion vault. The builders clearly sought polychromatic effects: split quarry stone for the walls, local beola stone for the roof, granite columns with Tuscan capitals, and dark stone from Oira for the arch rings. Small stone brackets support the cornice, while the central body plays with recessed square panels. Inside, every surface is frescoed, including the portico vaults, a complete painted programme typical of early Christian churches, where narrative cycles taught scripture to a largely illiterate congregation. The chapel sits within a larger sequence of such scenes, each one a station in the story of Saint Francis.

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