Basilica di San Bernardino da Siena

The majestic Basilica of San Bernardino, developed from the fifteenth century to accommodate the body of the Sienese Saint, is a precious treasure chest with its highest examples of Abruzzo sacred art.

Entering from the main door the visitor is impressed by the grandeur of the basilica with three naves. The large central ship is surmounted by a carved and gilded wooden sky with the Bernardinian monogram finished in 1724 and enriched in 1732-1733 by three paintings by the Neapolitan Gerolamo Cenatempo depicting, the major: The Immaculate Conception with Saints Bernardino and Giovanni da Capestrano, and two minor episodes of the life of the saint.

From via Fortebraccio, climbing the spectacular staircase, you can see the sense and grandeur of the convent complex of San Bernardino and the imposing bulk of the elegant Renaissance facade. On the sides of the staircase, designed at the end of the seventeenth century and built only in 1825, the six niches were to accommodate as many figures, while the four powerful pedestals at the base and at the top were decorated with statues representing the four protectors of the city: Massimo d'Aveia, Equizio di Amiternum, Pietro Celestino V, Bernardino from Siena.