Survey and Restoration of the Church of Santo Geminie

San Gemini, Italy
Project Director: Max Cardillo
Restorer: Nikos Vakalis

The church of Santo Gemine, the main church of San Gemini, is called the Duomo (cathedral), although it is not the seat of bishops. The adjacent parish house is the residence of the town priests and holds the parish offices. The church holds the remains of the town’s patron saint, Santo Gemine, a Syrian monk that lived and preached in the area sometime during the period of the 7th to 9th Centuries (sources vary on the dates attributed to his life).

Rebuilt several timesOne of the oldest church in San Gemini. The history is not very clear, until the 19th Century. Some sources say it was first built in the 6th Century while others claim the 8th Century, when it is claimed by some sources to have become the seat of the Bishop of Carsulae and San Gemini;These claims are based on the not so reliable story of the life of Santo Gemine. The original building was probably completed before the 13th Century and was a smaller, religious structure within a cemetery that was located in that area. It was rebuilt once or twice in the 13th-14th Century period as larger Benedictine church and monastery. In 1833-1847 it was substantially transformed when the whole interior and vaulted roof was redone in a neo Renaissance style. A new freestanding bell tower was added and the façade was partially reconstructed in a historicized medieval manner by the Engineer Livoni, perhaps with some advice by the neoclassical sculptor Antonio Canova.

The façade is an interesting collage of different constructions spanning a period of 1,000 years. The present configuration of the façade was established in 19th Century, after the major renovation. The upper half of the façade was most likely completely rebuilt in a medieval style, including a strange gothic window with very unusual tracery. On the lower right side of the façade, a section was built with large stone blocks of ancient Roman origin (probably from Carsulae). This wall is part of a medieval tower built sometime between the 9th and 13th Centuries. It is unclear whether it was originally the bell tower of an early church or some form of defensive structure. Eventually it is incorporated into the church and seems to have been functioning as a bell tower until the 19th Century when it was partially knocked down and replaced by the present one. On the lower right is a projecting masonry base, probably from the 13th Century, when the present church was started in a Romanesque style on top of a burial ground. The lower course masonry blocks are made with large, recycled Roman building materials taken from a substantial public structure. The central section has traces of a gothic entrance door, which was later partially closed. This element is part of the gothic church, completed in the 14th Century. It is centered on the main axis of the church and was built up against the preexisting tower.  Above the door, cutting into the gothic arch of the older entrance, is the gothic window, probably done in the 19th Century.  The existing door and lunette are in a renaissance style and probably done in the 15th Century. The façade of the building is skewed in relation to the axis of the church. It is not clear whether it represents an earlier orientation of the church or a vernacular tradition of rotating the façade in relation to the axis.

Architectural Survey of the Church

The facade and exterior perimeter of the church were surveyed. The façade was drawn showing all the blocks.  This was accomplished through orthophotography and taking measurements using a total station. The exterior perimeter plan of the church was also measured and drawn as well as the plans of the church Interior.

Archeological Survey

Five test pits have been excavated in the gardens in areas adjacent to the church: one behind the apse that did not yield much information, two in the garden to the west of the church that revealed the bases of walls and floors (probably part of structures belonging to the old abbey that was near the church). The last two pits were done externally along the West wall, couple of meters back from the front façade. A burial ground was found. Some of the graves were older than the front section of the church (13th Century), their exact age was not determined because no clearly datable objects were found.

Facade Restoration

The restoration of the façade commenced in 2005 and finished in 2010. This long period is due to the large surface of the façade and the short, one month, seasons of the field work. The restoration involved cleaning, pointing, consolidating and treatments of the façade’s stone masonry as well as the door jambs and the small frescoed lunette over the main entrance.
on the lower left of the entrance: removing a layer of plaster that covered the masonry and revealing the large Roman blocks. The stone was consolidated, cleaned and pointed. Exposing this medieval masonry was very exciting. Few people in town were aware of the existence of these large blocks under the plaster, probably done in the early 20th Century. For most it was an interesting surprise that revealed an important historical layer of this building.
The work proceeded without many surprises, most of the stone work was fairly clean, partly because it was regularly washed by rain, but also because it is ocated in a place that is away from heavy automobile traffic so there were much fewer problems with “Black Crusts” than what was found on the church of San Giovanni Battista. The lunette held a badly weathered fresco of God the Father, probably done in the 20th century. It was restored by Nikos Vakalis, one of our instructors, with the assistance of students in 2010.