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Chiesa di S. Maria delle Fornaci  (Book 7) (Day 8) (Map D2)

In this page:
 The plate by Giuseppe Vasi
 Today's view
 The Order of the Trinitarians

The Plate (No. 128 - ii)

Chiesa di S. Maria delle Fornaci

Fornaci means brick kilns and these gave name both to a gate (Porta Fabrica or Porta alle Fornaci) and to this church which is outside the walls of Rome. Most likely some of the workers lived near the factories and the church served their families. The view is taken from the green dot in the 1748 map below. In the description below the plate Vasi made reference to: 1) S. Maria delle Fornaci; 2) Fornaci dei mattoni (brick kilns). The small map shows also 3) S. Angelo alle Fornaci (lost).

Small ViewSmall View

Today

The view today

The church was restored under Clemens XI by the Trinitarians. The façade was designed by Filippo Raguzzini. The bell tower is a XXth century addition. Today the area is densely populated and there are no longer the kilns which gave name to it. In my background a detail of the entrance to the Friary.

The Order

Freeing the slaves

The Trinitarians had the mission to pay the ransom for Christians who had fallen into the hands of Muslim pirates and had been sold as slaves. This is what happened in 1805 to an Italian lady, Antonietta Frapolli. Her adventures in the harem of the Bey of Algiers provided the plot for Rossini's Italiana in Algeri. You can compare this church with Chiesa della SS. Trinità in Via Condotti.

Excerpts from Giuseppe Vasi 1761 Itinerary related to this page:


Chiesa di s. Maria delle Fornaci
Fuori di questa porta evvi la chiesa di s. Maria delle fornaci col convento de' frati Trinitarj scalzi, ed ancora la chiesa parrocchiale di s. Angelo cognominata, come l'altra, per le molte fornaci, che sono quivi da cuocere i mattoni, e altri lavori di creta; e la via si crede da alcuni che sia l'Aurelia vecchia.

Next plate in Book 7: Chiesa di S. Sabina
Next step in Day 8 itinerary: Porta Fabbrica

Go to    or to  Book 7 or to my Home Page on Baroque Rome or to my Home Page on Rome in the footsteps of an XVIIIth century traveller.


All images © 1999 - 2003 by Roberto Piperno. Write to romapip@quipo.it