Basilica of San Nicola, Tolentino
Saint Nicholas of Tolentino, one of the great preachers and miracle workers of his time, passed the last thirty years of his life in this Augustinian monastery, where he died in 1305.
The Basilica was modified over successive centuries but the extraordinary Cappellone di San Nicola, where the saint is buried, and the magnificent adjoining cloister have survived in their original form.
The present basilica dates from the 16th Century and comprises a single wide nave. The elaborate gothic portal by Nanni di Bartolo (1435) stands at the centre of a later Baroque facade. The interior is roofed by a superb gilded coffered ceiling, one of the finest examples of its kind in Italy, carved by Filippo da Firenze between 1605 and 1628, covering the entire 38 metre length of the nave and carved with 21 statues of the Madonna, the Redeemer and saints. Guercino's altarpiece of St Anna (1640) stands in one of the side chapels.
The Cappellone di San Nicola houses a cycle of frescoes dating from around 1325 which are the largest and finest in the Marche and were to have a profound influence upon successive generations of Marche painters.
Much discussion still surrounds the identity of the artist. All agree that it was the work of a painter belonging to the Rimini school and many believe him to have been Pietro da Rimini, who was responsible for a cycle of frescoes at the monastery of Pomposa, near Ravenna.
The immediate power of the frescoes is derived from its powerful use of colour - deep blue, black, sea green and carmine. The lower scenes around the four walls depict the life and miracles of St Nicholas, above which are scenes from the life of Christ and (in the lunettes) scenes from the life of the Virgin, while the eight principal figures in the vaulted ceiling are the four Evangelists and four Doctors of the Church. The stone sarcophagus of the saint stands in the centre of the room.
The adjoining 13th Century cloister formed part of the original monastery. Its varied designs of octagonal columns support a single upper storey, while the side adjacent to the church has a 16th century first floor loggia. The original fresco decorations were painted over by later frescoes (1690) though some traces remain.