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Not far from Ravenna, we are here to view the Sant’ Apollinare Nuovo basilica. Although built during the beginning of the 6th century, Pope Gregory the Great later ordered that the mosaics in the church be blackened, as their golden glory distracted worshippers from the prayers.
The basilica gained its present name in 856, when relics of Saint Apollinare were transferred from the original Basilica of Sant’Apollinare, also in Classe, because of the threat posed by frequent raids of Adriatic pirates.
When the UNESCO added the basilica to the World Heritage List, its experts pointed out that “both the exterior and interior of the basilica graphically illustrate the fusion between the western and eastern styles characteristic of the late 5th to early 6th century. This is one of the most important buildings from the period of crucial cultural significance in European religious art”
Of course, the highlight is Saint Apollinare himself, accompanied by twelve lambs on a gold background, representing the twelve apostles. What is amazing to us is that although the mosaics in Ravenna and this nearby town are fifteen hundred years old, they are preserved as though they are new.
– Contributed by Evanne Brandon Diner (see bio), chronicler of local village life in Northern Lazio, and property restoration and purchasing consultant. www.lavventuraitalia.com
Very beautiful. I love mosaics. The best ever: Monreale cathedral near Palermo, Sicily. The walls of this cathedral are completely covered from ground floor to roof top with mosaics depicting biblical (of course) scenes. A must see!
Stunning! There are so many incredible places in Italy with mosaics it would be impossible to see them all in a lifetime. I never tired of seeing them. We did not get to this one, so thank you so much for sharing.
we visited this and the mosaic’s are just beautiful!!
We were told that Ravenna is also the place that lasagna was invented!!
My husband and I visited this church on Easter Sunday 2004 while on tour in Italy. It was breathtaking at say the least. I cried while listening to the Mass being said in Latin. We were all in awe of the beautiful mosaics in this church built in the 6th century! It was so exciting to see this on ItalianNotebook today!! Thank you for showing this wonderful church!
This is Sant’Apollinare in Classe, there is another church called Sant’pollinare Nuovo in Via di Roma, Ravenna. But the pictures refer to sant’Apollinare in Classe, situated 5 km from the center of Ravenna.