The first
mention of the church in any of the sources dates back to 1121
Rebuilt in
1671 but only completed in the years 1710/11 by Giacomo
Onorato Recalcati (?/1723)
Restored in
1821
VAULT
“Assumption” and apse by Girolamo
Troppa (1630/after 1710)
3rd
CHAPEL ON THE RIGHT
“Our Lady
of the Rosary” by Biagio Puccini (1673/1721)
from Lucca, student, as well as Troppa, of G.B. Gaulli aka Baciccio
MAIN ALTAR
“Martyrdom of St.
Agatha” by Biagio Puccini
Very
dramatic and explicit painting with the representation of the torture that,
according to tradition, the poor saint from Catania in Sicily suffered in the
third century AD: her breasts were eradicated with pliers
3rd
CHAPEL ON THE LEFT
“Crucifixion” by Biagio
Puccini
At the
altar there is the venerated statue of “Our Lady of Carmel” better known as Madonna
de Noantri (Our Virgin Mary) carved in cedar wood and carried in procession
during the summer festival in the Trastevere district known as FESTA DE NOANTRI
(Festival of Ourselves)
It was a
member of the Order of Carmelites, the Englishman St. Simon Stock, who created
the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, after the mountain range in Palestine
where monks lived following the example of the prophet Elijah, and where
tradition has it that there the Virgin Mary appeared to Stock on July 16, 1251
It is said
that the statue was found by some fishermen after a storm near the mouth of the
Tiber. The “Madonna Fiumarola” (Virgin Mary of the River) was given to the
Carmelites (hence the name Lady of Mount Carmel) in Trastevere
Having
become the protector of Trastevere, the statue was placed in a chapel, built in
1600 by Cardinal Scipione Caffarelli Borghese (1577/1633), specifically to
shelter it
The chapel
was demolished in 1890 for the construction of the Viale del Re (Avenue of the
King), today's Viale Trastevere and, after a few decades in S. Giovanni Battista dei Genovesi,
the statue was placed in the church of St. Agatha of Sicily
From here,
every year on the first Saturday after July 16th (day of the apparition of Our
Lady on Mount Carmel) during the Festa de Noantri, the statue, covered with
jewels and precious clothes, is carried in procession through the streets of
the district to the Church of S. Crisogono
where it remains for eight days before returning to the church of St. Agatha of
Sicily
Originally
some bold young men, also known as cicoriari for being collectors of
chicory in Campoli, near Frosinone, in two processions used to carry on their
shoulders the heavy structure with the statue. Later it was established a
special brotherhood, the so called carriers
Today in addition
to religious events there are also shows, cultural events and walks among
stalls selling sweets, toys and crafts
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