The
Parish Church of
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Click on the image to enlarge
Built around the year 1000 in Romanic style, the Parish Church is dedicated
to Saint John the Evangelist. It has been restored many times: the façade
was rebuilt around the half of the XVth century and, on this occasion,
the coat of arms of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese junior (Valentano 1520
- Rome 1589), of the Bishop of Montefiascone Cardinal Bentivoglio, and
that of the community of Valentano, with the image of St. John the Evangelist
(the new one has got an alder tree), were placed on it.
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The title of Parish, which was removed from the homonym church situated
outside the town walls, was given to this sacred building in 1253 by order
of Pope Innocenzo IV.
Inside, the building is a fine example of Baroque, an evidence of the
last and final works of restoration, between the end of 1600 and the beginning
of 1700. A remarkable fresco showing a Crucifixion, attributed to Marcello
Venusti, is the only thing left from the previous interventions.
The valuable wooden statue of the Madonna Assunta, donated to the Church
by the priest G. B. Lazzari, dates back to the half of XVIIth century.
Other splendid paintings were made by Corrado Giaquinto (Madonna, Child and souls in Purgatory), and by Pietro Lucatelli (Madonna of the Rosary with St. Domenico and saint Caterina, dated 1700). Two paintings dedicated to St. John the patron saint were made by the painter Pietro Padroni at the end of XVIIIth century. Padroni came from Città della Pieve but lived in Valentano. Among the other paintings, we have to mention the one by Alessandro Mattia from Farnese, known as the "painter of Valentano" (Madonna with Child and the saints Peter and Paul, coming from the Church of Saint Mary). Another painting is the one by Francesco Maria Bonifazi from Viterbo, with Saint Francis, Saint Lucy and Saint Agata (this painting is, unfortunately, in a bed state of maintenance), dated around 1700. Under the main altar there's the artistic urn containing the relics of the other patron saint, Giustino, a Martyr to whom the name was imposed.
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