MESSINA – Sunday 12 May the Archeoclub of Messina joined the national “Open Churches” day, 30th edition. The appointment is at the church of San Paolino in Santa Rita di Messina, in via Santa Marta. “Thanks to the availability of the Curia of Messina and the parish priest Father Franco Pati, the church will remain open from 11.30 to 13.00 from 16.00 to 18.00”, the Archeoclub reports with the president Dino Fazio.
The building and its heritage will be illustrated by the members Grazia Musolinoart historian, e Franco Chillemiexpert in the history of Messina architecture, authors of the information sheets available on the Facebook page “Archeoclub Messina.
Discovering an ancient church and its works
The Archeoclub explains: “At 11.30 am, after the greetings of the president and the parish priest, an accurate reading of the ancient church, founded in 1600, and its works will be offered: frescoes and paintings from the 17th and 18th centuries connected to the cult of San Paolino. Since the church was officially dedicated to Santa Rita da Cascia on 22 May 1925, and elevated to the dignity of a diocesan sanctuary, the story of the important cult and processional rite dedicated to the saint will be retraced”.
And again: “Exceptionally, never shown to the public, will be a group of precious artefacts made by accredited Messina silversmiths made between the 18th and 19th centuries, all linked to the cult of the saint Ortolano, commissioned without sparing expense by the ancient brotherhood, presented for the occasion and difficult to see as they are stored elsewhere for protection and safety reasons. Among the works with the greatest visual impact, the ancient Standard with the historiated circular insignia of 1741, the seventeenth-century volume of Chapters of the gardeners The beautiful Chalice with the mark of the silversmith Francesco Bruno adorned with the accurate floral decoration with tulips and anemones typical of the Messina masters, theCenser surmounted by the statue of San Paolino with the consular initials of Sebastiano Iuvarra”.
In the photo Main Altar, painting by G. Battista Quagliata, 17th century, the Virgin appears to San Paolino.
