Church of Sant'Antonio da Padova in Francofonte
The church of Sant'Antonio da Padova in Francofonte It stands next to the former Benedictine monastery.
It was built on 13 June 1468 at the behest of the baron Don Giovanni Cruyllas. The foundation date is engraved in heavily corroded Gothic characters on the architrave of the portal. Throughout its history this sacred building was of considerable importance and always enjoyed the attention of the Gravina-Cruyllas family. Inside there are in fact the burials of three members of the family. After the foundation of the monastery, the church lost its importance.
The church did not suffer major damage following the earthquake of 1693, but the restoration works that took place in 1968 altered its essence by eliminating characteristic elements of considerable value.
The facade is one of the few remaining elements of the original structure. It has a smooth spread of sandstone ashlars in which the valuable Gothic-style ogival portal is set. In the splay there are two pairs of small columns, a third one has been lost, on which develops the series of elegant capitals which in turn support the ribs of the cuspidate arch.
