History of Chiesa Diruta
index
1. About Grottole
2. The Church of St. Luca and St. Giuliano
3. Bibliography
1. About Grottole
This small town derives its name from the Latin word cryptulae or the Greek one κρυπτάι , which refers to the typical natural or artificial caves that can be found in the entire region, as the famous inhabited ones in Matera. In the past these cavities might have been dwelt by the inhabitants but nowadays they are used as wine and food storage spaces because of their constant temperature condition\ all over the year. We do not have any information about the establishment of the town, but it probably dates back to the Greeks, thanks to the pottery found in many archaeological excavations. The town centre stands on a couple of hills —Serritello and Terravecchia—in a dominant position from which it is possible to admire the Basento River valley.
2. The Church of St. Luca and St. Giuliano
We do not have infomation about the starting point of the history of ‘Chiesa Diruta’ but we know that it was built in place of two chapels, respectively dedicated to St. Giuliano and St. Lucia, the latter standing right next to the ancient tower, used as bell tower. The first certain infomation dates back to 1508, when the former parish church of St. Maria Maggiore was donated to Honorato III d’Aragona, lord of Grottole, from the clergymen: this event ratified the passage of the parish to the new church of St. Luca and St. Giuliano. The first chapter assembly dates back to 1540. During the Sixteenth and Seventeenth century many interventions modified the appearence of the church: the main gate was completed, new altars were built, while the choir was not already built in 1599. The many pastoral journeys registred during that time represent a valuable proof of the evolution of the church and its architecture; from their report we know that there were: ten altars; a choir with an organ, accessible by a stone staircase; a wooden suspended pulpit; a wooden rectangular choir made of 24 seats; a baptismal font on the right side of the entrance; a sacristy on the southern side of the choir and a simmetrical room on the other side, not used for rituals. On September 8th 1694 a earthquake seriously damaged the church, which was affected by collapses during the following decades. A pastoral visit report, dated at mid-Eighteenth century, shows damages to the bells, while in 1767 some restoration works were carried out, building a buttress (still visible along via della Resistenza) on the left hand side of the apsis. The sources write about a “fallen down church” already in 1774, but it was still used for celebrations, held in the chapels or in the sacristy, while at the beginning of the Nineteenth century the church was completely abandoned. In the mid-Nineteenth century the municipality did not have funds to restore the church and supposed to demolish it to build a school or the new ciry hall. Fortunately this solution was definitively avoided in the Twenties, but nothing was made to preserve the monument. In 1985 a portion of the façade with its statues collapsed, due to the damages of the earthquake which had taken place five years before. The following years many restoration works were carried out, such as: injections of mortar into the masonry; concrete screeds and curbs on the lateral vaults and on the transept; reinforced seams on the buttress; reinforced concrete walls in the caves under the apsis.
3. Bibliography
Andreucci T., Una pagina di storia patria, Napoli 1910 Quaranta G., Cento anni di vita amministrativa a Grottole, Miglionico 2009 Quaranta G., Cinque secoli di vicende storico-religiose a Grottole, Roma 2016 Vendola D., Rationes decimarum Italiae nei secoli XII e XIV Apulia-Lucania-Calabria, Città del Vaticano 1939
Archives AAA, Clero e Parrocchie, busta 13, fasc. 1 AAM, Assensi, busta 10, cartella 31 AAM, Religiosi, busta 6, cartella 9 AAM, Religiosi, busta 7, cartella 3 AAM, Visite pastorali, Mons. Giovanni Michele Saraceno, 21 Aprile 1544 AAM, Visite pastorali, Mons. Giovanni Trulles de Myra, 21 Maggio 1599 AAM, Visite pastorali, Mons. Simeone Carafa Roccella, 27 Novembre 1643 AAM, Visite pastorali, Mons. Giovanni Battista Spinola, 27 Novembre 1657 AAM, Visite pastorali, Mons. Antonio Ludovico Antinori, anno 1755 AAM, Visite pastorali, Mons. Niccolò Filomarino, anno 1766 AAM, Visite pastorali, Mons. Pietro Giovine, anno 1873 ACG, Registro delle Deliberazioni del Decurionato di Grottole, Deliberazione del giorno 1 Luglio 1860
APG, Conclusioni capitolari, busta 17, reg. 1 APG, Conclusioni capitolari, busta 17, reg. 4 (1740-1749), Verbale del giorno 11 Novembre 1745 APG, Ordini religiosi, Congregazioni, Chiese, Cappellanie, Famiglie feudali ed Istituti, Chiesa dei santi Luca e Giuliano, busta 23, fasc. 1 ASP, Consiglio Generale degli Ospizi, busta 173 ASP, Intendenza di Basilicata, busta 949, fascicolo 125 ASN, Notai del ‘600, scheda 281, protocollo 18, Notaio Grimaldi, Atto del 17 Luglio 1653 SBEAB, Scheda artistica del bene (scheda OA) Archives index AAA, Archivio Arcidiocesano di Acerenza AAM, Archivio Arcidiocesano di Matera ACG, Archivio Comunale di Grottole APG, Archivio Storico Parrocchia dei Santi Luca e Giuliano di Grottole ASP, Archivio di Stato di Potenza SBEAB, Soprintendenza Belle Arti e Paesaggio della Basilicata
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