Mother Church in Aidone
Morgantia07 - CC1.0
The Mother Church in Aidone, dedicated to San Lorenzo, is probably the oldest place of worship in the village.
It was built in the 11th century on the remains of an ancient building dating back to the 7th century, as evidenced by some studies carried out on the foundation walls inside the Sacristy. It was seriously damaged by the earthquake of 1693, and underwent renovation work. Of the original Norman structure, the following are still visible: the lateral buttresses of the façade, the pointed arch portal, surmounted by a cusp and the large wall ashlars discovered in the sacristy, corresponding to the apse area. The façade was rebuilt using ancient material. Of particular interest is the fact that the two grooves on one side of the door have been recovered, representing the measurements of the palm and the cane (ancient units of measurement). In the façade, fragments of an ancient inscription can also be seen. Following the reconstruction carried out after the earthquake, the side chapels, the bell tower, never completed and the large volutes designed in bricks, placed on the external buttresses, were also added.
The interior with a single nave, has several side chapels.
Inside the church there are sacred furnishings, ancient vestments, statues and paintings partly from the convent of Santa Caterina. Of particular value is the silver reliquary in the shape of an arm containing the relic of San Lorenzo. According to tradition, it was brought from Rome by order of Isabella Gioieni, wife of Marcantonio V, who had introduced the cult of the saint for an alleged miracle (the grace of having conceived a child or that of having saved the latter from the plague).
