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Parish Church of Santa Maria a Corsano

church
Places of worship

A small masterpiece of Romanesque architecture nestled in the hills of Anghiari

The Parish Church of Santa Maria a Corsano is located in the hills of Anghiari, in the town of San Leo, along the road connecting Sansepolcro and Arezzo. The Romanesque church dates to the 12th century and was probably built by Camaldolese monks atop the ruins of a Pagan temple on the old road that linked Anghiari to Citerna, near a water source.

The building is interesting thanks to its bell tower, built into the façade with the entrance portal at the base. The single-nave interior vaunts three shallow chapels and is in the shape of a Latin cross. It was renovated in the 15th century to add stone decorations in the arches and pillars.

The 17th-century high altar conserves a beautiful 14th-century fresco from the Arezzo school depicting the Madonna del Latte. The church also has a modestly-executed Renaissance votive fresco. Confiscated by the Italian State in 1866, the church was sold along with the surrounding lands to private entities and transformed into a farming storehouse. Declared a national monument in 1917, the building was restored and reopened to the public in 1954.