Santi Gervasio and Protasio Parish Church

The spiritual heart of the village, the Parish Church of Saints Gervasius and Protasius traces its origins back to the early centuries of Christianity.

According to tradition, it was Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, who founded it between 392 and 394 during his exile in Bologna.
Mentioned in a document from 1099 from the monastery of San Prospero, the church stood in the Motta Bernini area and even then had three naves, surrounded by a cemetery.

The present building was constructed between 1612 and 1621, thanks to donations from the local population and the Prince of Correggio, on the site of the ‘Campagnola Vecchia’.
The 18th-century restoration work, directed by the architect Bartolomeo Rocco, completed its harmonious and solemn Baroque design.

Inside, there is a MonteSanti organ dating from 1798, a refined wooden tabernacle inlaid with silver and mother-of-pearl (the work of Fra’ Fedele da Scandiano) and rich pictorial decoration, culminating in the ‘Glory of Saints Gervasius and Protasius’ frescoed on the false central dome.
Among the most notable works are the large altarpiece by Luigi Manzini (1837), inspired by Modena’s Neoclassical style, and a remarkable altar frontal in polychrome scagliola.

The façade, sober and elegant, is punctuated by pilasters and crowned by a tympanum with a low arch.
Above the main portal, a terracotta bas-relief depicts Saint Peter, a reminder of the ancient church of Castellazzo.