Churches & Places of Worship

At Ausonia on the slopes of Mount Fammera, is the ancient Romanesque church of Santa Maria di Correano.

The church was built on the ruins of an ancient Roman villa and in the archaeological area there are numerous finds such as tombs, polygonal walls, the great medieval sarcophagus and the plaque inserted into the right pillar of the bell tower.

Inside there is a fresco of St. Nicholas, by a Benedictine school, and pictorial fragments.
 

The sanctuary of the Madonna del Piano in Ausonia is also known as the Sanctuary delle Frate.

It is a fifteenth century building whose crypt contains Benedictine era frescoes.

The pictorial cycle also tells the origin of the construction that took place following the "Remingarda Miracle".

It is the story of the crippled shepherdess Remingarda, who, according to legend, had a vision of Our Lady.

Madonna asked her to erect on the same place as the vision a shrine in her honour.

It is  believed that she was healed from her deformities.

The sanctuary also houses a venerated statue of the Madonna with Child in polychrome wood originally by Castro dei Volsci.

The church of Saint Michael Archangel is located on the highest point of the city of Ausonia and is built in white stone.

It is the oldest monument having been built between the late twelfth and early thirteenth century on a pre-existing temple dedicated to the worship of Hercules.

The ancient temple re-emerges in monuments and altars, depicting the myth of Leda and the Swan, embedded in the pillars and masonry.

The facade is characterized by a large main door and a low and massive bell tower.

The church has three naves separated by pillars and at the entrance are two Roman funerary altars used today as holy water fonts.
 

Atina, Co-Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta by Claudia Bettiol

The co-cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta in Atina was begun in 1725 and completed in 1746 and was built on an earlier Christian cathedral in turn built on the ruins of the temple of Saturn.

The facade has two low bell towers. The interior has three naves with a baroque baptistery in wood, paintings by Aloisio Volpi and frescoes by the Atinate, Teodoro Mancini.
 

The sanctuary of St. Eleuterio was completed in 1582 on the place of burial of the patron of Arce.

It has three naves and in the apse there are frescoes dating from the fifteenth century.

Sant'Eleuterio is invoked against the bite of rabid dogs and snakes.

He was born in an English town and decided to go to Palestine.

On the return trip from directed to and stopped for a rest in Arce, at the Torre del Pedaggio (Toll Tower).

The innkeeper stirred up her big rabid dogs against him but they were tamed immediately at the sight of the pilgrim.

The next morning, the landlord found the body of the dead pilgrim, guarded by the mastiffs and many snakes.

The pilgrim was immediately acclaimed a saint by the population, which elevated him to the city's patron.

The medieval church of St. Augustine and of St. Anthony,  in pre-Romanesque style,

It has been restored several times over the centuries.

The portal is original and dates back to 1200s.

In the church are buried two of the fifteenth and sixteenth century characters: the ‘warlord’ and the governor of Arce, Isidoro Vasquez, and Bartholomew y Alarco that had the rule of the duchies of Arce and Sora.

The Church of Santa Maria of Arce dates from the fourteenth century.

It has a rectangular plan divided into two aisles.

It has a valuable crucifix and statue of Our Lady of Sorrows.

The statue was crowned with a tiara in 1930.
 

The church of Saints Peter and Paul of Arce was built between 1702 and 1744.

It has a Baroque style with rich stucco, among which stands out La consegna delle chiavi e Sulla via di Damasco.

The façade is flanked by two towers: one with the clock and the other with the sundial.

The church has a large octagonal dome 24 meters high.

Inside there are the relics of Sant' Eleuterio in an urn beneath the altar.